Bryan McAllister’s personal reference notebook
September 11, 2026Short & citedBlog
Civic Viewpoint.
A quiet encyclopedia with a personal desk
Kept by Bryan McAllister — short guides, clear facts, and the Canadian angle when it matters.
Civic Brief • Unsolved Crime

D.B. Cooper

D.B.

Updated September 11, 20261 min readCited sources

D.B. Cooper is the name used for an unidentified man who hijacked a Northwest Orient Airlines flight in 1971, extorted $200,000, and parachuted from the aircraft. His true identity and fate have never been confirmed.

What it is

On Thanksgiving Eve 1971, a man identifying himself as Dan Cooper boarded Northwest Orient Airlines Flight 305 in Portland and claimed to have a bomb. He demanded cash and parachutes, then released the passengers in Seattle before ordering the plane airborne again.

Key details

The hijacker received $200,000 in ransom and later parachuted from the Boeing 727 after the plane left Seattle. His landing site, survival, and identity were never confirmed.

Why it matters

Authorities conducted an extensive manhunt, but the case remained unsolved. D.B. Cooper became a lasting symbol of an extraordinary aviation crime and one of the most famous mysteries in U.S. criminal history.

In short

  • Hijacked on November 24, 1971, Northwest Orient Flight 305.
  • Used alias Dan Cooper, later misreported as D.B. Cooper.
  • Demanded $200,000 ransom and four parachutes.
  • Case remains unsolved and is the only unsolved US skyjacking.

Quick questions

Who is D.B. Cooper?
D.B. Cooper is the name given to an unidentified man who hijacked a Northwest Orient Airlines flight in 1971 and disappeared after parachuting from the aircraft.
What happened to D.B. Cooper?
He threatened the crew with a bomb, received ransom money, released the passengers, and then parachuted from the plane over the Pacific Northwest. His fate is unknown.
Was D.B. Cooper ever caught?
No. Despite a long investigation, he was never positively identified or arrested.

Sources

  1. Encyclopaedia Britannica — https://www.britannica.com/biography/D-B-Cooper
    Supports: Identity as D.B. Cooper, the 1971 hijacking, ransom, parachute jump, and unsolved status
  2. Wikipedia — https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/D._B._Cooper
    Supports: Alias Dan Cooper, Flight 305, Boeing 727, ransom amount, and sequence of events
  3. HISTORY — https://www.history.com/articles/who-was-d-b-cooper
    Supports: Overview of the hijacking, ransom, parachute jump, and unresolved identity
  4. CBS News — https://www.cbsnews.com/news/remembering-db-cooper/
    Supports: Date, ransom amount, Flight 305, and unsolved nature of the case
  5. Crime Museum — https://www.crimemuseum.org/crime-library/cold-cases/d-b-cooper/
    Supports: Unsolved case status and disappearance after the jump
  6. The Week — https://www.theweek.com/articles/517640/briefing-legend-db-cooper
    Supports: Alias Dan Cooper and the date of the hijacking