John Paul M. Joaquin Tech 07.18.2022 09:Jul AM EDT

The Mystery of D. B. Cooper and the Only Unsolved Case of Air Piracy in the History of Commercial Aviation

Human history has some of the most fascinating events to tell: from the life of the first Homo sapiens, the founding of civilization, to the creation of city-states and the foundation of the internet.

Many similar events have intrigued and drawn the attention of many learned people, from would-be historians to experts in the field. However, it is the occasional mystery, like unsolved cases, that draws the attention of the public the most.

These unsolved cases include the identity of Jack the Ripper, the reason behind the Zodiac Killer's murder spree, and the death of Edgar Allan Poe.

However, there is one criminal that not only managed to escape law enforcement but also remained anonymous to this day despite the crime he committed occurring during modern times.

This crime is the case of one Dan Cooper and the NORJAK incident.

D.B. Cooper and NORJAK - A Brief Summary

On the afternoon of November 24, 1971, a man who would later be known as Dan Cooper used cash to buy a one-way ticket on Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 305, which was bound to Seattle, Washington from Portland, Oregon., per the FBI's official website.

The incident happened before the flight and just after he finished his ordered drink of bourbon and soda. At this time, he haded the flight stewardess a note indicating he had a bomb in his briefcase and instructed her to sit with him.

The stewardess did as she was told, and wrote down what Cooper told her while giving her a glimpse of a collection of wires and red colored sticks that was inside his briefcase which looked like a bomb.

She then handed the note to the aircraft's captain, who acquiesced to Cooper's demands. The note read that Cooper wanted four parachutes and $200,000 in twenty-dollar bills.

Cooper's fellow passengers were then exchanged for the money and the parachutes, and the captain was ordered to set a course for Mexico City.

However, Cooper didn't make it to Mexico City, according to Oregon Public Broadcasting. During the flight, Cooper jumped from the airplane and parachuted into a wooded area at night, carrying with him his $200,000 worth of twenty-dollar bills.

D.B. Cooper's Ultimate Fate

He was never seen or heard of again, with his identity becoming a mystery that left law enforcement baffled.

Despite law enforcement officers' best efforts, they were unable to figure out what happened to Cooper.

Richard Floyd McCoy was almost charged for the hijack, which was now known as the Northwest Hijacking or NORJAK. He committed a similar incident less than five months after the incident but was later ruled out due to a near identical mismatch.

Another clue that hinted at Cooper's fate was found thanks to a young boy finding a rotting package full of twenty-dollar bills worth $5,800. The serial number of these bills reveals that they were part of Cooper's ransom money, but any trace of him or nearby human remains could not be found.

The Legend Retold

Although the FBI had redirected resources allocated to the D.B. Cooper case by July 12, 2016, the story has not left the public's curiosity.

This curiosity eventually led Netflix to create a limited docu-series titled "D.B. Cooper: Where Are You?!" that tells the event of November 24, 1971, to the modern audience.

The mini-series was directed by Marina Zenovich and was made available to stream on July 13, 2022, on the 51st anniversary of NORJAK.

Rotten Tomatoes gave the mini-series a 100% fresh critic rating, while its audience gave it a 27% average audience score.

Meanwhile, The Guardian mentioned in its review that people looking to get the end of the mystery would be disappointed, while people interested in studying human nature can get their money's worth.