could the white rope be part of the container and not the parachute itself that was dyed pink? see photo of the clips being tied back..

It is unlikely that the white rope came from the pink reserve.  Also, there is nothing conclusive to prove that the white rope came from the missing reserve.  Who knows, the missing reserve may have been dyed pink as well.

Reserve chest parachutes were in very short supply in the 1960s.  The one in question was probably dyed pink to identify it as belonging to the skydiving center where it came from.  What was in the missing reserve was apparently junk from damaged reserves or other sources.  So who knows if it was white, pink, polka dot, or some combination of these and other colors.

Based on the appearance of having been heavily used, it appears to me that the source of the white rope remains to be seen.  Again, based on his inspection of the pink reserve, maybe Tom Kaye could comment further. 

And if the white rope came from the missing reserve, why didn't Cooper just leave the remainder of the canopy on the airliner as he did with the pink reserve?  If he threw that canopy out the back of the aircraft, it would be more likely to be found than anything else he disposed of or even his own body assuming he was a no-pull.

According to the FBI along with Cossey the dummy chute was white as well as the lines..

Tom seems to believe it's part of the original construction of the canopy....I mean container..

Those white lines are not a normal part of the container. They do appear to be parachute suspension lines. Everything else is speculation, none of it provable. The questions in my mind were, where else would they come from but the other reserve, and why else would they be there unless he tried to tie it on. They don't look 'more worn' to me, just the cut ends are frayed, possibly from an awkward cut if he cut it back off after tying it on.

In my jumping experience, one of these snaps almost always came unfastened during the opening.
 

Where would you get an idea like that? Not even close. Just because your friend apparently failed to hook one up correctly once...


As for a rigger, I would suggest looking up JerryBaumchen over at DZ. You'd probably find him in Gear and Rigging, or in Speaker's Corner. I've never interacted with him, he probably doesn't know who I am, but from reading his posts he appears to be a knowledgable old-school rigger who would probably be familiar with gear from this era.

I'm trying to follow the logic of using another set of lines to attach and why no evidence of a second chute dismantle was left behind like everything else that was discarded or not used?

Here is one with a cord/line on the outside of the container..

I'm trying to follow the logic of using another set of lines to attach and why no evidence of a second chute dismantle was left behind like everything else that was discarded or not used?

Here is one with a cord/line on the outside of the container..

Those are just normal threads holding the fasteners in place.  The shroud line connections to the fasteners are inside the pack and not shown.  The short cord tied around the end hand loop is not part of the parachute assembly.

Same chute both pics..found it interesting to have lines coming out (frayed) similar to our issue..

Those white lines are not a normal part of the container. They do appear to be parachute suspension lines. Everything else is speculation, none of it provable. The questions in my mind were, where else would they come from but the other reserve, and why else would they be there unless he tried to tie it on. They don't look 'more worn' to me, just the cut ends are frayed, possibly from an awkward cut if he cut it back off after tying it on.

You are not allowed to view links. Register or Login

In my jumping experience, one of these snaps almost always came unfastened during the opening.
 

Where would you get an idea like that? Not even close. Just because your friend apparently failed to hook one up correctly once...


As for a rigger, I would suggest looking up JerryBaumchen over at DZ. You'd probably find him in Gear and Rigging, or in Speaker's Corner. I've never interacted with him, he probably doesn't know who I am, but from reading his posts he appears to be a knowledgable old-school rigger who would probably be familiar with gear from this era.

Yes. Rigger JerryBaumchen over at DZ shared his knowledge several times in the Old Cooper thread at DZ. His opinion should be sought. I doubt any of the 'vested interests' here will do that! I guess it falls on you to ask Baumchen, if you will . . . it would be nice to have his input on these questions. It might only take him seconds to explain what these photos are showing, or not. I hope you ask his opinion!