Bruce and I have sparred good naturedly over whether Cooper jumped a 26 ft Steinthal  Navy Conical (Bruce's theory) or a 28 ft C 9 (my theory).

Can't say for sure. All white suggests a 26 ft Conical, but Cossey says the canopy was 28 ft.

From a survivability standpoint it's irrelevant. Both are extraordinarily strong and reliable canopies. I have never heard of either coming apart in a high speed deployment if properly maintained. If left in the sun, however, all bets are off. I watched a sunburned C 9 shred on opening over Livermore CA. The owner had been really careless about UV exposure often leaving his canopy baking in the sun before he packed it. The rest of us immediately stuffed our canopies into their sleeves to protect them. He got bit hard when his C 9 started to come apart on a terminal speed opening. Fortunately he did a successful cutaway and landed under his reserve.

My canopy of choice for a NORJACK jump? C 9.

377

Bruce and I have sparred good naturedly over whether Cooper jumped a 26 ft Steinthal  Navy Conical (Bruce's theory) or a 28 ft C 9 (my theory).

Can't say for sure. All white suggests a 26 ft Conical, but Cossey says the canopy was 28 ft.

From a survivability standpoint it's irrelevant. Both are extraordinarily strong and reliable canopies. I have never heard of either coming apart in a high speed deployment if properly maintained. If left in the sun, however, all bets are off. I watched a sunburned C 9 shred on opening over Livermore CA. The owner had been really careless about UV exposure often leaving his canopy baking in the sun before he packed it. The rest of us immediately stuffed our canopies into their sleeves to protect them. He got bit hard when his C 9 started to come apart on a terminal speed opening. Fortunately he did a successful cutaway and landed under his reserve.

My canopy of choice for a NORJACK jump? C 9.

377

377, if all chute varieties were maintained equally, how much more confidence would you have in a C9 over a civilian chute of that era? Are we talking 10% more reliable for this type of jump? 100%? 1,000%?
Also, if I am hearing correctly, you believe Cooper chose his chute because he knew that particular container would have likely held a C9. Like seeing a minivan on the road and assuming there's a soccer mom in it. Is that right? Or could he have read the card and found that info?

The above commentary assumes one important dynamic: Cossey told the truth - at least a little - about the parachutes. I do not know if that is true.

What we do know is firming up. The 302 that Georger posted one page ago that detailed Cossey's first contact with the FBI regarding the parachutes suggests some new dimensions to me. To Whit:

1. Cossey initiated the contact with the FBI, not the other way around, which I had thought was the case.
2. Cossey was involved with the FBI very early in the investigation - November, 1971. I did not realize it was that immediate.
3. Cossey started right off with the NB-6 story, over-stuffed with a 28-foot canopy. That's the story he told me in our first interview in 2009. In subsequent interviews he reversed himself, at one point claiming the Cooper chute was an NB-8, and that he had no idea how the NB-6 story got started.
4. Cossey started right off with suggesting DBC got injured on landing.
5. Cossey started the "dummy chute" idea regarding the "used reserve." I wonder how he knew since he wasn't at Issaquah Sky Sports when the transfer was made. Ironically, Sheridan Peterson backs up Cossey 100% on this angle in a recent email to me. Yet, Pete says he never met Cossey, which is hard to believe.
6. Cossey is described as "devising" the dummy reserve for training purposes.

I havent even read the rest of your post. I was stopped short by your first sentence. "Cossey initiated the contact with the FBI" ? Where in hell do you get that from the 302 I posted? Stop inventing shit, Smith! Anything to diminish Cossey, right? Why dont you just say: 'The liar Cossey was trying to sell himself right from the start' - nothing could be further from the truth! You dont even care about the truth! And you are too impatient to wait for it.

How about this? " Contact COSSY for full particulars on these chutes -= date 11/26/71", in reply to a reporter that had contacted the Seattle. Note the spelling.

I have no comment about the rest of the crap you posted. People are now free to believe whatever they want. Your sales on bullshit should sky-rocket! Im ready to let the whole thing collapse.   

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The above commentary assumes one important dynamic: Cossey told the truth - at least a little - about the parachutes. I do not know if that is true.

What we do know is firming up. The 302 that Georger posted one page ago that detailed Cossey's first contact with the FBI regarding the parachutes suggests some new dimensions to me. To Whit:

1. Cossey initiated the contact with the FBI, not the other way around, which I had thought was the case.
2. Cossey was involved with the FBI very early in the investigation - November, 1971. I did not realize it was that immediate.
3. Cossey started right off with the NB-6 story, over-stuffed with a 28-foot canopy. That's the story he told me in our first interview in 2009. In subsequent interviews he reversed himself, at one point claiming the Cooper chute was an NB-8, and that he had no idea how the NB-6 story got started.
4. Cossey started right off with suggesting DBC got injured on landing.
5. Cossey started the "dummy chute" idea regarding the "used reserve." I wonder how he knew since he wasn't at Issaquah Sky Sports when the transfer was made. Ironically, Sheridan Peterson backs up Cossey 100% on this angle in a recent email to me. Yet, Pete says he never met Cossey, which is hard to believe.
6. Cossey is described as "devising" the dummy reserve for training purposes.

I havent even read the rest of your post. I was stopped short by your first sentence. "Cossey initiated the contact with the FBI" ? Where in hell do you get that from the 302 I posted? Stop inventing shit, Smith! Anything to diminish Cossey, right? Why dont you just say: 'Cossey was trying to sell himself right from the start' - nothing could be further from the truth! You dont even care about the truth! And you are too impatient to wait for it.

How about this? " Contact COSSY for full particulars on these chutes -= date 11/26/71", in reply to a reporter that had contacted the Seattle. Note the spelling.

I have no comment about the rest of the crap you posted. Im just not going to waste any more time on you. Its not worth the effort.  People are now free to believe whatever shit you want to sell ...

Bruce, note that an Associated Press reported named "CLOSSY" (assuming the FBI got it right) is the one who contacted the FBI and explained that he had been trying to contact COSSY, presumably Earl Cossey, both at home and at the skydiving location.  An agent was then assigned to get in touch with Earl Cossey and ask him some questions that are listed in the FBI memo.

Thanks.

Good luck.

... I havent even read the rest of your post. I was stopped short by your first sentence. [/i] "Cossey initiated the contact with the FBI" ? Where in hell do you get that from the 302 I posted?...
 

I made that assumption from the first line I read: "Earl J Cossey...appeared at the Seattle Office at which time he furnished the following information."

Initially, I had interpreted that to mean that Cossey had "approached" the FBI.

It is a mistake that is not minor, but you seem to be going apoplectic on this. Why? But more importantly, what is your view of Earl Cossey? Do you think he is truthful? If so, why? If not, to what degree?

Earl Cossey and the Truth

Is Earl Cossey telling the truth about the parachutes? That is an essential and critical question in our investigation here. Personally, I don't know, but I strongly suspect that Coss is not truthful because of all the variations he has told me - and others - about the parachutes. These variations diminish his credibility in my view. Plus, there are statements from others, and corroborating documentation from other sources that cast Coss in a deceptive light. Lastly, is there any confirming documentation that Earl Cossey owned the back chutes that is not sourced to Coss himself saying so? I do not know of any.

Here is what I know about Coss:

1. In my first interview with him in 2009, he told me that had given NWO two back chutes. One was an NB-6 overstuffed with a 28-foot canopy. He also said that he had modified this rig by relocating the rip cord, and sewing a pocket for the rip cord handle - hiding it so that it would not snag on anything as his road a jump plane to altitude. He characterized the subsequent rip cord pull as being a two-stage affair, an "Out, and then an Up." Cossey told me that it would be too difficult for a whuffo to accomplish that maneuver in the freezing cold.

2. He also said that he provided a second back chute, one that he called a "Paradise." I questioned him on that name because I had read at Sluggo's site that the civilian chute was a Paracommander, and somewhat steerable. But Coss was undeterred. He reconfirmed that the civilian chute was a "Paradise."

3. Coss went into great detail about how DB Cooper picked the wrong chute when he choose the NB-6, characterizing it to be the "VW Bug" because it provided a hard opening while the civilian chute was a "Cadillac," and had extra padding and was steerable, whereas the NB-6 was not.

About a year later, 2010 or so, I interviewed Cossey a second time and he said he didn't know how the NB-6 story got started, and denied ever saying that the civilian chute was a Paradise. I asked if it was a Paracommander as many at the DZ were claiming, and Coss said "No, it was a Pioneer." Also, he restated his claim about providing a military chute, and said it was an NB-8 with all the mods that he had previously described.

He was quite adamant that Cooper "didn't make it," and "augured into the ground somewhere." He also denied ever talking to the FBI about the technical aspects of the jump or the parachutes used.

4. I called Coss a third time, 2011 or so, to ask about the news that Norman Hayden was being identified by Geoffrey Gray as the owner of the back chutes. Coss was furious, loudly proclaiming that he owned the parachutes given to DB Cooper. He continued and said "Norman Hayden is full of shit," and added that NWO had paid him for the parachutes, stating, "That should tell you something." Later, Coss said that he had never met Norman Hayden even though he packed his Pioneer-Steinthaul in May 1971.

Coss also said that the NB-6 story "is essentially correct," but didn't clarify any details. When I asked him about the transport of the parachutes, Coss said that he was home when Al Lee, the NWO Ground Ops guy, called him asking for back chutes. Coss said that he put them in a taxi and sent them to Boeing Field. When I asked why he sent the parachutes to the wrong airport he exploded in a rage, saying "Fuck you, and slammed his phone down. He never spoke with me again despite my repeated attempts.

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Earl Cossey and the Truth

Is Earl Cossey telling the truth about the parachutes? That is an essential and critical question in our investigation here. Personally, I don't know, but I strongly suspect that Coss is not truthful because of all the variations he has told me - and others - about the parachutes. These variations diminish his credibility in my view. Plus, there are statements from others, and corroborating documentation from other sources that cast Coss in a deceptive light. Lastly, is there any confirming documentation that Earl Cossey owned the back chutes that is not sourced to Coss himself saying so? I do not know of any.

Here is what I know about Coss:

1. In my first interview with him in 2009, he told me that had given NWO two back chutes. One was an NB-6 overstuffed with a 28-foot canopy. He also said that he had modified this rig by relocating the rip cord, and sewing a pocket for the rip cord handle - hiding it so that it would not snag on anything as his road a jump plane to altitude. He characterized the subsequent rip cord pull as being a two-stage affair, an "Out, and then an Up." Cossey told me that it would be too difficult for a whuffo to accomplish that maneuver in the freezing cold.

2. He also said that he provided a second back chute, one that he called a "Paradise." I questioned him on that name because I had read at Sluggo's site that the civilian chute was a Paracommander, and somewhat steerable. But Coss was undeterred. He reconfirmed that the civilian chute was a "Paradise."

3. Coss went into great detail about how DB Cooper picked the wrong chute when he choose the NB-6, characterizing it to be the "VW Bug" because it provided a hard opening while the civilian chute was a "Cadillac," and had extra padding and was steerable, whereas the NB-6 was not.

About a year later, 2010 or so, I interviewed Cossey a second time and he said he didn't know how the NB-6 story got started, and denied ever saying that the civilian chute was a Paradise. I asked if it was a Paracommander as many at the DZ were claiming, and Coss said "No, it was a Pioneer." Also, he restated his claim about providing a military chute, and said it was an NB-8 with all the mods that he had previously described.

He was quite adamant that Cooper "didn't make it," and "augured into the ground somewhere." He also denied ever talking to the FBI about the technical aspects of the jump or the parachutes used.

4. I called Coss a third time, 2011 or so, to ask about the news that Norman Hayden was being identified by Geoffrey Gray as the owner of the back chutes. Coss was furious, loudly proclaiming that he owned the parachutes given to DB Cooper. He continued and said "Norman Hayden is full of shit," and added that NWO had paid him for the parachutes, stating, "That should tell you something." Later, Coss said that he had never met Norman Hayden even though he packed his Pioneer-Steinthaul in May 1971.

Coss also said that the NB-6 story "is essentially correct," but didn't clarify any details. When I asked him about the transport of the parachutes, Coss said that he was home when Al Lee, the NWO Ground Ops guy, called him asking for back chutes. Coss said that he put them in a taxi and sent them to Boeing Field. When I asked why he sent the parachutes to the wrong airport he exploded in a rage, saying "Fuck you, and slammed his phone down. He never spoke with me again despite my repeated attempts.

Just to pause for a minute, the goal in all of this is to determine Cooper's knowledge/experience with a parachute, yes? To know for certain what gear  Cooper was presented with on the plane, and by extension what he chose to jump with, correct? I submit the following:

Trying to determine why Cossey's story changed is much like trying to determine why Cooper picked the chutes he did. We can't know the answer. Even if we got an answer to the Cossey question, we would still be merely speculating as to Cooper's motives for picking the chutes he did. I think 377 makes a great point with his assessment that Cooper picked the right chute from a skydiver's perspective. But if he was not an experienced jumper, he may still have picked that chute at random, or because it felt right, or because of how he was carrying the money. The best we can do is lay weak odds, narrowing almost nothing down based on chute selection. Just my opinion. Am I wrong? Tell me so.

You have got it right.

In the final analysis, it really doesn't make any particular difference what Cossey said or why Cooper selected the parachute(s) that he took with him.

It is self-evident that Cooper was not even remotely properly dressed for making a parachute jump in the weather conditions that existed during the hijacking.  It is also self-evident that Cooper botched his request for parachutes.  He got what he asked for, but that was not what he should have asked for.

There are many other things that are more important to the Cooper matter than the parachutes he actually jumped with.