BruceSmith

Back at Y'all, I had two fasciating interviews over the weeks that reveal a possible whole new wrinkle in the DB Cooper story that could change everything, at least as how I understand the basic story line. Here's what I got: Interview with Marianne Scott Lincoln, August 8, 9, 2009. Marianne Scott Lincoln is currently running for the School Board in a Pierce County WA district, and I interviewed her for the local newspaper. In the course of our conversation we began talking about my work on the DB Cooper case. When I mentioned that DB Cooper had demanded $200,000, Marianne interjected and said adamantly, “Not he didn’t. He asked for $400,000 at first." Startled, I asked her how she knew that. “I know because I was listening to the radio transmissions from the cockpit to Sea-Tac tower.” Here’s Marianne’s story. The DB Cooper skyjacking was underway as she got home from school. Marianne was 14 years old at the time, and lived with her family in a home at Shady Acres Airport in Spanaway, WA. The home was right on the runway and had a hangar. Her family had several aircraft and was part of a very active and large flying community. When Marianne got home that day she went straight to her father’s workshop in the hangar and turned on his VHF radio. She called family friends at the Thun Field Tower (Pierce County Airport, now) and got the radio frequency for the Sea-Tac Tower. She tuned in and listened for the next four hours. At first the transmission were garbled as the Tower had many flights to re-direct, but within 10-20 minutes the radio chatter quieted and for the next few hours she just listened to the transmissions: one voice from the plane (Rataczak’s), and one voice from the Tower. She said that the plane voice relayed the message that Cooper wanted $400,000. She said that a series of negotiations began then and the radio transmissions were brief and had long pauses of empty quiet. She could only hear one side of the discussion, meaning that the plane voice relayed information back to Cooper or whomever on the plane, then reported back to the Tower. She never heard any of the discussions. The Tower voice in turn was reporting to others in the Tower, who discussed counter-offers, and the Tower voice then reported the offer to the plane voice. At no time did the plane voice and the Tower voice participate in the negotiations or discussion. They merely acted as mouth-pieces for others. Marianne never heard what the others were saying, either in the Tower or on the plane. Also, at no time did anyone from the FBI or CIA get on the radio, as far as Marianne heard. Marianne listened for hours and said it often got boring. She turned on a TV set and had a second source of information coming in. Her father (named William Scott, BTW, another piece of synchronicity!) also came in, as did a couple other family members. Marianne doesn’t fully remember if she was still listening when 305 took off from Sea-Tac at 7:30, or when Cooper jumped in the 8:10-8:30 time frame. She thinks she was, but she was also eating dinner with her family, listening to family discussion about Cooper and their speculations on what was happening and what was going to happen. However, Marianne strongly believes that she heard that 305 turned east, away from Victor 23, over Gresham, Oregon, just after crossing the Columbia River, and continued over the Columbia between Mt. Hood and Mt. Adams. I’ve had two interviews with Marianne on this subject, and her memory is unclear. At first she was adamant that 305 turned east over Gresham, mentioning it several times. But in the second interview, when we tried to piece together other aspects – such as if the plane voice was different out-bound from Sea-Tac as opposed to the voice in-bound to Sea-Tac as Rataczak told me it was (R. said he handled comm. in-bound and Scotty did out-bound). I’ve suggested to Marianne that she try some self-hypnosis or candle focus to clear her mind and focus in on these issues, and she said she might. She also made one more chaneg in the second interview. She said she as listening to Seattle Center, broadcasting out of Auburn, WA, not Sea-Tac Tower itself. Also: Her neighbor at Shady Acres was a NWO pilot, whom she suggested I call to get more background info. I talked with him today and he said Rataczak ‘was one of the good guys.” Never flew with him, but he knew him. He didn’t know Scott too well, though.

Hi Y'all, Snowmman has given me a ton o' leads to pursue in finding Ted B. Braden. Here's a report on what I've found out. 1. A woman named P. was married to a Ted B Braden and they lived in a rural town south of Pittsburg. 2. I spoke wiith a resident of their town named L., and learned a few things: During the 1970s, P. had a relationship with Ted Braden that was was short lived and intermittent. Ted was a truck driver, based out of Michigan, possibly the Detroit area or Chicago. P. and Ted had some real arguments and fights. Ted was abusive, getting violent when he “drank too much.” P. and Ted were not together for long and she divorced him in the 70s. P. stayed in the area for many years – at least 20. Duriing the 1970s, Ted was in and out of P's life. L. said she didn’t really remember Ted much, but did say that “he seemed like a disciplinary kind of guy – yeah – he was kind of a military kind of guy when I think about it.” Age and time fits. L. said P would be late 70s now, and Ted was in his mid-late 40s during the time he was with P in the 1970s. P is now reported to be living in Florida with or near family. Other: Still looking at Niles, Ohio leads.

An update: 1. Jim Hetrick is at the top of my contact list. 2. I'm circing the wagons around Ellsworth and White Haven PA, calling in some Back East help, including an ex to help scout things out. 3. Theodore M, in my judgement, was a long-shot, not a pot-shot. Uncommon first name, plus same state. That was good enough for me to make a call. That said, I do agree it is important to tred carefully with inquiries. Stomping around with the excitment of the hunt can hurt some innocent people. I recommend we have a policy here of not posting phone numbers, home addresses or other personal contact information, and rather, save it for PMs, unless unusual circmstances require a further cast of the net.

I contacted the family of Theodore M. Braden, and spoke iwth his adult daughter. She claims no knowledge of Theordore B, or of any relation that was a paratrooper in Vietnam.

THEODORE M. BRADEN 213 GOVERNORS AVE TRENTON, OH 45067 SSN: 275-68-XXXX (SSN was assigned in OH in 1975-1976) Phone: REDACTED (I don’t want to post it here, PM me if you need it.) Year of Birth: 1959 Age: 49 Who, on some outside possibility, could be Ted B. Braden’s son (I know, that’s stretching). So, here’s what I’m thinking: We can get back into the spirit of where we were in April of 2008 (the parachute find) and try to work together. If the FBI didn’t investigate Braden, we should. 1. Let’s find him (if he’s still alive). 2. Select someone to talk to/interview him. (Bruce maybe?) 3. See if what he has to say, will eliminate him or makes us more suspicious. 4. Figure out a path forward after that. I can try to do this alone, but two heads are better than one and about sixteen are a LOT better than one. I took Bulldog back down to the basement and chained him up. I stayed awhile, thanked him, and tried to console him, but he’s taking it pretty hard. He doesn't accept defeat very well. I commiserate with The Bulldog, Sluggo - here's what I've got: 1. Had a good chat about Ted with a 19 yr vet of the Yougnstown FBI office. "I've never heard of him," is what I got back. The agent was named John and was a nice guy. Even looked in a local phone book for Bradens while I was on the phone. Nada. 2. Had a dandy chat with Frank, the Editor at the Niles Trib. He's intrigued and I wouldn't be surprised if he joins us for a bit. He's gonna ask the "old hands" tomorrow. 3. Niles, Ohio has only one high school (I'm thinking Ted or family is in and around Niles) and has quite a bit of bullying going on these days. Hmmm. 4. PIO at the Niles PD didn't know nuttin', the chief was unable to take a call, but the PIO tried to patch me to some vet detectives out on the street, but it got too hectic. Tomorrow's an other day... 5. Donny Duncan is about as hard to find as Teddie Bear. Random House still has him on the books, but the grunts in publicity decided today was not a good day to pick up the phone. But hearing their phone messages put a smile on my face. Serious attitudes and a Brooklyn accent?!!! Ahh, my people! 6. I talked to every Don Duncan I could find in Montana, but no dice. As for the Montana Heritage Project, they don't seem so interested in making history this week. 7. I met a really sharp gal tonight covering the Pierce County (WA) Fair, and normally when this happens, and she tells me she is married I get a tad disappointed. But, not this night! Her hubby was an intel guy for the 5th SF in a Southeast Asian country far, far away, and after I told her about Dan-Ted-Billy-Donald she's sure her hubby would really like to talk with me. Ahhh, bottle of wine, fruit o' da vine...I see some lip-smacking Cabernet in my future.... She's also a former psych nurse from Canada. I love synchronicity, don't y'all?

Hey good work Brucie. So "Braden" is the correct spelling? Did you ask about rumors that Waugh was Cooper? How old was Braden in 1971? How Tall? Anyone have any photos of Braden? Is he in Sherman's "Who's Who From MACV-SOG"? what page? http://www.specialforcesbooks.com/MACVSOG.htm Yes, according to Plaster the correct spelling is Braden. This is all the information I got. I didn't ask about height, etc. I don't think Plaster knew, or had seen, Braden directly. Plaster says he got to Nam after Braden had supposedly left, and is merely reporting on a rumor.

Greetings Y’all, I received an email from Maj. John L. Plaster, the author of SOG, and he says he was familiar with the widespread rumor that Ted B. Braden was DB Cooper. Plaster said he had heard that Braden went AWOL in 1966 or 67 and then appeared in Africa as a mercenary. He was apprehended there and turned over to the US government as a war deserter, but the court-martial was kyboshed because he knew so much about SOG ops. After that he disappeared, and no one has heard from him again. Plaster emphasized that this is all hear-say from rumors. One last bit: he too says Braden had an uncanny resemblance to the FBI sketch of Danny.

Jiaime la Belle Province! Est-ce-que possible de recommander un bon coin quand je visite Montreal pour m'investigation au Allen Memorial Instutue - le premier location pour MKULTRA researcher?

Thanks, Schlitz, Now I've got to figure how to downsize the pix so that they fit the DZ's 300KB maximum size. Stay tuned! BAS

I'm trying to attach pictures of Tina's Bar. How does one do that? Thanks- BAS

Bruce I failed to ask... its important. In all of this did Faxio's say anything about their cows? Were their cows on the bar? Had they been sending their cows to the bar during this period? Anything about their cows during this period? --------------------------- Also, failed to ask in your conversation with Rat: Did you ask Rat what he meant by "... and I could see the suburbs of Portland coming up ...." This is key in all the Rat testimony. Thanks. Georger 1. Cows. The question never came up. I did see cows on the property, however, about twenty in a fairly large pen. Based on what I saw of the Fazios' current operation, it's hard to see how the cows could have gotten to the river. Or why. There are no good grazing lands between the river and the Fazio work buildings that I saw. But, what were the conditions in 1971, eh? 2. As for Bill Rataczak and Portland, I did not ask him about what he meant by the phrase, "I could see the suburbs of Portland coming up..." I sensed a wall when I asked, "Where were you relative to Portland. Did you fly east or west of Portland, or did you fly over the mettro area." "I don't know," was his answer and I didn't push it.

Sluggo treads tenderly here, but he raises a valid point about critically examining the issue of Fazio's memory. He reports seeing an extensive money particle field apparently deposited by a recent high tide, but nobody else does. How could such significant and visually obvious evidence be missed by everyone else investigating the site??? Why were no samples collected? Why would the FBI dig so much if it was obvious that all the money was on the surface? Your thoughts on this Bruce? Tidal variation in water depths are found far upstream in many major rivers that flow to the sea. Net current flow however is rarely upstream on a flood tide unless it is a dry summer with little downstream fresh water. *** Excellent points, 377, and ones I have been wondering as I stagger around in another 100-plus day (a week ago our high temps were mid-60s here in Yelm, which is a little cool, but not uncommon - now I feel like a desert iguana - laying low on the ground). 1. Tides. Exactly what are the tidal actions like? Tina's Bar is still pretty far from the actual ocean. My sense is that they are episodic, and dependent on storms and heightened lunar cycles. 2. Lots o' Money. If there was so much friggin' money around, how come the Ingrams didn't see it all before Brian starting spreading the sand? And once the Fazios were there and started going through the tide line clutter, how come they didn't snatch a few souvenirs, particularly when the Feds got involved, or were the Fazios late to the scene? Did they ever go down to the beach when the Ingrams were there? Exactly when did they see all the moola? Hmmm.

First… Good Job Cousin Brucie! A site-visit always carries a lot of weight over “armchair” speculation. I hate to sound argumentative, but we all have to maintain “critical thinking” if we are ever going to build a useful database. I see something in Al Fazio’s story that years of accident investigation indicates Mr. Fazio’s memory MAY BE faulty. He said the shards and bits were discolored and black. All the photos (that I could find) of the bills the first few days after being found, show the (nearly whole) bills as somewhat faded but not discolored (to a high degree) and none are black. The currently accepted theory (borne out by chemical analysis) is that the black discoloration was caused by dusting (all) the bills with silver-nitrate AFTER they were in FBI custody. The more recent photos of the money definitely show a lot of discoloration, including blackening. So, is Al Fazio’s memory mixing recent images with the images of the day? Does this discount other aspects of his description? Did the parts of the bills that broke away from the main bodies, experience something that caused them to be discolored (including blackening)? Does any of this matter? I do not have any answers, but I will maintain “critical thinking” as I process Bruce’s report on Tena Bar. Respectfully submitted, Sluggo_Monster(Late for work... again!) I'd like to add a clarification to what I remember Al Fazio saying. He had taken out Tosaw's book, I believe, and flipped to the page with the money laid out. He pointed to the blackened one, and the ones that had lost their edges, become shards, had holes, etc. He said, as best as I can recall, "These are the kinds of bills we saw up and down the tide line. Bits and pieces of damaged, discolored bills." I don't think he specifically said black, but he may have. He definitely mentioned "discolored." Obviously, I walked away linking "black and discolored" in my mind from the visual. I'll be heading down there again soon, and I'll clarify.

. Correction: Bruce I have never talked about Lake Vancouver - but I have talked about LaCames Lake on the Ledbetter Road where the old mansion is. Is this what you are referring to. I don't have a clue where Vancouver Lake is and I have never been there. Sounds like you had a nice day of it. Oops. So many lakes, so little time, so hot...

Thanks, Bro.

Greetings from Tina's Bar, y’all, where it is 101 degrees tonight at 8 pm, or at least that's what the time-temp sign read when I jumped on I-5 and headed back to Yelm. Whew, just about the hottest day I've ever experienced on this planet, but it was such a kick to see the actual spot, the ground zero of Cooper World. I had a wonderful chat with Al Fazio and his younger brother Richard, who by the way was an electronics guy for the USAF in NPK, Thailand, 68-69, monitoring hi-tech surveillance stuff dropped upon the Ho Chi Minh Trail. He didn't know anything about SOG, or Billy, etc., but it was just one more neat little Cooper piece dropping into place, Al took me to Tina’s Bar, which is amazingly non-descript. In 1971 the Fazios allowed unlimited public access to the beach and left a jar for quarters. Two bits was the going rate. Worked okay for years, but then the party people started trashing the place and stealing stuff. The Fazios have a large sand operation, and it is my understanding that the sand they sell is dredge spoils that nowadays are pumped onshore into receiving pits, whereas back in 1971 Al told me they threw it on the beach, expanding the beach depth and width. Now they have huge piles along the roadway leading to their place. Currently, the beach at Tina's bar is quite narrow and steep. So is the river bed under the water. I dove in immediately when I got to Tina’s, before I took any pictures or interviewed folks I saw further down the strand. Prior, though, in his air-conditioned office Al told me he saw a lot of shards of Cooper twenties in all kinds of shapes and sizes, discolored and black, and in various states of decomposition. He said many pieces were scattered along the high-tide mark. He couldn't say if it was that day's high tide, or the previous night's or the day before, etc. He also said that nothing was buried, that it was all laying on the surface as if it had just washed in. He said the three bundles were just lightly covered. Also, he is convinced they floated down the Washougal, and once they got to the environs of Tina’s Bar, ol’ Mom Nature did a little spit and spin and put the Fazio family into the history books. BTW: Their Cooper literary collection is quite impressive. Al also disputed Himms claim that shards were found in the sand as deep as three feet. Al said there were no shards buried at all, and when I ask him about Himms claims, he damn near choked saying, "that's a lot of gov't ...crap. (Guy has talked to a lot of reporters and knows how to stay on the record without compromising his visceral language - I like that.) Also, Al confirmed that there is tidal action present at Tina’s Bar, so ocean water could push certain dead people up river if they have money tied to them, theoretically. BTW: Al spotted me as I drove in. When I came to a stop and began to get out of my truck, he eyed me and said, “Reporter, eh?” I smiled; then he did, too, and we had a wonderful time of it from there. Both Fazios are great guys. Al confirmed that he and Richard were on the backhoes digging for the Feds, and he used that perspective to back up his claims that nothing was found deep. I met the downstream neighbor of the Fazios, a guy named Guy, who is nice guy, too, (or is that three). Guy told me that Tosaw was at Tina’s Beach for a month last year, again employing divers and dredging the bottom. Only came up with car parts and bed springs. “It’s amazing what down on the bottom of this river,” said Guy. Guy also caught a steelhead for dinner when I was there. When I was swimming I found the river to be dangerous. The downstream current is deceptively strong and moved me steadily. However, more troubling was the river pulled me deeper into the current and away from the beach. This rip-pull was very strong, comparable to the worst I’ve ever seen in the ocean, and it was active from just off-shore in about four-feet of water, which was about 8- 10 feet from the shoreline. A short distance upstream from the Fazios is a Clark County beach called Frenchman’s Bar that only costs 2 bucks to get in. No lifeguards, but there were a ton of people in the water, and a bunch of dudes on jet skis. Again, the current and rip-pull were just as strong as at Tina’s Bar. I talked to a bunch of people and everyone was chatty and quite aware of DB Cooper and the history of Tina’s Bar. But some folks are getting things confused. One thirty-something I spoke with was convinced that Tina’ Bar was down by the Washougal, not near where we were standing at the end of NW Lower River Rd, about two miles downstream from the Fazios. However, this guy told me it was once possible to drive along the river from Tina’s to the Lewis River, but that the road bed has collapsed and sunk. The flood plain is quite enormous in this part of the river. Many miles wide. I just found this stuff interesting, and not necessarily tied to the DBC story. Speaking of which, by late afternoon I decided to try for the trifecta of Cooper Swimming Spots – Tina’s, Vancouver Lake and the Washougal. But after I left Tina’s I stopped at the near-by Vancouver Lake, which Jo has talked about, but it was closed due to a deadly blue-green algae bloom. Then I headed down to the Washougal for a swim and to see if Jerry needed any friendly shoulders to cry on now that the Feds have totally abandoned the Washougal theory, but when I got there I found he was home in eastern Oregon. Jerry had a good laugh when I told him about the new propeller theory. Continuing, the parts of the Washougal that I saw near the Columbia were in Camas, WA, and they were nearly bone-dry – trickles and thin riffles of current. Plenty of kids were swimming in them, but it was a long steep hike down to the water from where I could park, so I bailed. Nevertheless, I was struck with the thought that any bag carrying 10,000 twenty-dollar bills would be quite visible for long periods of time during the dry summer months. Yes, it could easily travel downstream in the wet season, but what happens if it gets lodged on a rock in the middle of the river in May? Nine years is a lot of summers to dodge high and dry-ness. Yes, Mom Nature can do many incredible things, but the Washougal Theory has a higher degree of doubt tonight for me than it did this morning. BTW: At one point I went swimming with my wallet in my bathing suit pocket. I’ll tell ya – just an afternoon of being soaked by Columbia River water darn-near tore up my bills by dinner time, let alone three months, three weeks or nine years. BTW: Dinner was wonderful at El Ranchero Viejo in Camas. The lemonade was exceptional. Also, rooms in the quaint, comfy 1902 Camas Hotel run 50-70 a night. Both were in the delightful Historic District which has big-leafed trees spanning across the streets. Sweet.

C'est moi, Mr. G. But, ahem, I said "Tough-ass."

Was unable to watch, no cable/sat TV at my place. I'd like to see a few post show synopses and critiques posted here. How was it? 377 I've just returned from watching the NG docu with the Formans and a ton o' their family. I was stunned by the abandonment of the Washougal theory by Ckret, Kaye and the powers that be, and replaced by the propeller theory. (When did they give up on the Washougal? Poor Jerry!) When the docu presented Kaye's theory of a transport of both DB Cooper's body and the money satchel three miles upstream from the confluence of the Lewis-Columbia Rivers up to Tena's Bar - bound up in a freighter's propeller - the room erupted in laughter and hoots. I kept hearing Georger's voice in my head -"Where's the proof!!! (Yes, I heard you G, but I guess you need to shout a little louder to reach Seattle - I'm 61 miles south). The voice-over said that Cooper landed directly in the water, and claimed the Lewis River is 300 feet wide, which will surprise many fishermenwho can tangle their lines easily with guys on the opposite shore. They surmised that Cooper drowned or died of the cold, and inferred that the Lewis is big enough to swallow up a body and a 28-foot chute. I also heard new claims: 1. Kaye says that Tena's Bar was not a site for spoils from the 1974 dredging, that the Bar was located just outside the dredge zone. No proof given, but he was shown stretching out a lot of tape measures, with Larry and the Babe from Chicago standing around. Hence, the position of the dredge-sediment layers are not relevant. That's what I heard, and I don't claim to understand their logic or reasoning. 2. Kaye was featured in the docu. Had as much air time as Ckret. Pictured examining the tie with a high-powered microscope. Said he had found pollen spores but did not reveal any information about them. No discussion about soil or mineral traces, or diatoms. 3. Docu said that 305 was being flown by autopilot and that's how the FBI knows where the plane was - flying directly on its prescribed flight plan course. 4. Although Ron and Pat Forman were not in the movie, half their family was. Several of the actors staged in the re-enactments at Tena’s Bar were Forman people. That impressed me because it indicates Edge West really did spend a lot of time with the Formans, more than I had known, and I covered shoots in several different locations - all suggesting they really liked the Barb Dayton story line. 5. I was in the movie, too! Brief scene from the Ariel Tavern. I’m the guy who was seriously intense and maybe a little smashed (yes) and was saying “BD Cooper was one tough-assed dude.” I had been interviewing the Edge West team and they were buying, so we kept drinking and before I knew it they had a friggin’ camera in my face. Well, the rest is cinematic history… 6. The docu discussed Christenson, but not Duane, and certainly not Gossett. Galen told me last week that the Edge West guys really hounded him to tell his story, but he refused. The docu also discussed Richard McCoy and how the FBI thought for a time that Danny and Dick were one and the same. 7. Himm was quoted as saying DB was a just an old con with a foul mouth, but the voice-over said that “there is little supporting evidence from eye-witnesses to support that claim.” Quite a slap, I thought, to the Keeper of the DB Cooper Official Story. 8. The docu moved briskly for the first 40 minutes and then bogged down. It really dragged for the 40-50 minute segment. I sensed they really had to scramble at the last minute pulling the Dayton stuff out, dumping any Washougal info, and quickly adding the splash down in the Lewis LZ, which had a re-enactment scene to back it up visually. 9. They showed a re-enactment of the jump. Daylight, though, from Perris, California, which I now know about thanks to you guys here on the DZ. I was impressed that the shades stayed on the guy’s face. I didn’t see the loafers fly off either. I looked closely at the flapping money bag, and I really appreciated how much bouncing around it did. It was definitely not stable. They showed the satchel tied in front of the groin or lower tummy, and appeared attached to the rig. Larry, in his video on the FBI site, says Coop made a rope handle and clutched the bag. I guess NG didn’t believe Ckret on this one and he let it go. The parachutist also did a lot of tumbling and rolling to simulate Larry's theory of Coop spinning out of control and panicking. The guy said the NB-8 did a fine job of deploying despite the spins. Again, I took it all to be a little dig at Ckret's pet theory of a bumbling Danny Boy losing it on the way down. There’s probably more, but that’s what I remember at the moment.

Now you're talking Snow.

QuoteI'm just 31 pages in, and Plaster's organization of facts, details and writing style is quite amazing. Just straightforward. No axe to ground. Just presenting the facts he's gathered (which seems pretty well rounded/complete, so far). It appears he did a lot of research. He names all the people he interviewed in the forward (special forces folks). It's a lot. Cousin Brucie: You have to get these two books. The photo book is too pricey, even used, I think..but these two are just single dollars. (used paperback) Quote I agree, Snowmman. I'm on it. Public Library route, though, this round. (I had to draw the line somewhere. It's a little daunting when your books are stacked next to the bed 2 feet higher than one's head, and on three sides, too....helps absorb some of the frequency waves from MKULTRA when I sleep, though...(smile).

If I recall my conversation with Cossey correctly, he said his NB 8 was a hard, right-hand outward pull. He also said the pull handle was tucked into the rig and would be hard to find. Bottom line, Cossey said he thinks DB was a no-pull and cratered. However, Tosaw writes that Tina reported that DB Cooper examined the chutes, including the rigging cards. Again, if I recall Tosaw correctly, he indicates that Cooper was reassured somehow seeing Cossey's signature. I'll double-check this.

After reading Billy Waugh's book, it is my understanding that SOG teams HALO jumped with T-10 parachutes. Further, I understand they were common military chutes for the time, and reliable. Thus, my question: In what way were T-10 similar to NB-8s? If DB Cooper was a SOG vet, would he have preferred an NB 8 over a paracommander? Anyone?

A "Breaking News" piece that I just submitted to a Pierce County, Washington newspaper: National Geographic dumps local authors from DB Cooper documentary With only days before local authors Ron and Pat Forman were to appear on a National Geographic TV special on legendary skyjacker DB Cooper, they and their story about Thun Pilot Barb Dayton have been pulled from the broadcast. “I guess our story was just too controversial for them, said Ron Forman. The Formans, writers of “The Legend of DB Cooper: Death by Natural Causes,” had described how their life-long friend and fellow Thun Field pilot, Barb Dayton, confessed to being DB Cooper in the late 1970s. In their book the Formans reveal the details of how Dayton said she hijacked Northwest Orient Flight 305, a commercial jetliner enroute to Sea-Tac, the day before Thanksgiving, 1971. Throughout late 2008 and early 2009, the producers of the Cooper documentary, Edge West Productions had spent several weeks in the Thun Field area filming the Formans’ story. At that time, Phil Day, owner of Edge West announced he planned to feature the Formans and the Barb Dayton angle in the documentary. Katie Greenfield, a spokesperson for Edge West, informed the [newspaper] late last week of the change: “Unfortunately, the executives at National Geographic chose to cut the Barb Dayton story from the film. This was disappointing to see it go but it was ultimately out of our hands. We are of course grateful to all the help and information the Formans’ and associates shared with us regarding Barb.” Titled, “The Skyjacker Who Got Away,” the special airs Sunday, July 26 at 7 pm and 10 pm PDT on Sunday July 26 on the National Geographic cable channel.

The difficulty with covert insertion and extraction speaks directly to my point about MKULTRA - the effort to develop operatives who could be switched on and off - it makes extraction a lot easier - ie: change personality and maybe gender, then grab a ticket and jump on a plane without a care in the world... La-di-dah. On the flip side, insertion: MKULTRA could de-sensitize an operative to 14 degree F cold, rain, pitch black darkness, unfamiliar chutes, and problematic LZs, all the while wearing loafers, but not a tie......