I found more info on the original transcripts. the crew also asked where the meals were, and wondered how they got on the plane. Cooper gave the ok to retrieve the meals, and the maps. Paul S. appears to have supplied the maps to the crew...
But we still dont know if he sent them in response to cooper request
Even though the crew could of requested both items. I would think this would be brought to Cooper's attention. would he allow for things to come on board he isn't aware of? he wouldn't have much control of the things if he didn't know what was coming, or going on the plane?
Certainly not decided in my mind one way or the other ....just pretty hard for me to dismiss straight away the statement "He wanted maps".
Like Anderson, no one ever talks about Hancock - but wasn't she the senior member of the Attendant crew. I just don't see how she could not have been in the loop - for guidance if nothing else - why would she say He wanted maps and meals. I can see "he said we could have maps and meals, or he let us get maps /meals. No --she says He wanted them - that had to come from somewhere...and if I not mistaken - will have to look - Cooper requesting meals is referenced another place also. To me, the idea that he might have requested maps -regardless of reason -is a pretty important piece of the story that has been left out...
I think you have to place Cooper's requests/statements in context. Cooper is saying a number of things that leave an 'impression' without necessarily being true. He is trying to control the crew and the hijacking through impressions. One impression is that he is technically competent without that necessarily being true - many examples of that. He orders "meals for the crew". Nice guy! Very thoughtful. He is hijacking their airplane and depriving people of their liberty but ordering "meals for the crew"? That's pretty funny. And other things he says falls into the same context.
Maps may fall into the same category. "Going to a pleasant place"! This leaves the impression of a long perhaps even uncertain journey ahead. He (no else else) brings up HAVANA!
The overall impression is a long undefined journey which ultimately could take them anywhere.
Cooper then turns around and bails early over Washington. No maps or meals required! They could have landed in Portland!
This is a Hijacking! You can't take everything Cooper says at face value. Cooper is manipulating everyone if he can.
He may have had a plan but it wasn't the plan he laid out if you take his actual actions literally, but he had a captive audience literally.
Second, Cooper is a manipulator. He had strong social skills/perceptions. He sorted out who he was going to use and not use very quickly. He chose Mucklow (more submissive) over Schaffner (resistant) very quickly.
He says he had a bomb made of dynamite but we don't know if that's true. He says his bomb is "electronic" and might be set off by "radio communications"? That is a pure attempt to control the crew using the radio. I mean they are on an airplane in the first place. Airplanes by their nature are electrical. So he brings on a bomb that could be trigger electrically by normal electrical activity on the plane? (I think not. Not unless he was suicidal). He tells Mucklow that he knows about the oxygen bottles ... but he never reached up and got an oxygen bottle out or even identified the place they were stored right above his head, to demonstrate his supposed technical knowledge. Then he cant get the rear door open! Then he tells the crew to lower the stairs where in fact they have no such capability in the cockpit. And it goes on and on and on ...
Don't take everything "Cooper" says at face value.
