Editing D. B. Cooper (section)

==Physical evidence==
During their forensic search of the aircraft, FBI agents found four major pieces of evidence, each with a direct physical link to Cooper: a black clip-on tie, a mother-of-pearl tie clip, a hair from Cooper's headrest, and eight filter-tipped Raleigh cigarette butts from the armrest ashtray.

===Clip-on necktie===
FBI agents found a black clip-on necktie in seat 18-E, where Cooper had been seated. Attached to the tie was a gold tie-clip with a circular mother-of-pearl setting in the center of the clip.{{r|vault_64|page=124|quote="On the seat numbered 18E a black clip-on tie was observed. This black tie contained a tie clasp, yellow gold in color. with a white pearl circular stone in the center." }} The FBI determined the tie had been sold exclusively at [[JCPenney]] department stores, but had been discontinued in 1968.<ref>{{cite report|title= Letter to Director of FBI|date= February 24, 1972|url= https://vault.fbi.gov/D-B-Cooper%20/D.B.%20Cooper%20Part%2022/view|publisher= Federal Bureau of Investigation|page= 355|access-date= February 8, 2023|archive-date= March 6, 2023|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20230306114245/https://vault.fbi.gov/D-B-Cooper%20/D.B.%20Cooper%20Part%2022/view|url-status= live}}</ref>

By late 2007, the FBI had built a partial [[DNA]] profile from samples found on Cooper's tie in 2001.<ref name=HelpSolve/> However, the FBI also acknowledged no evidence linked Cooper to the source of the DNA sample. FBI Special Agent Fred Gutt said, "The tie had two small DNA samples, and one large sample&nbsp;... it's difficult to draw firm conclusions from these samples."<ref name=NotMatch>{{cite news |last=Cloherty |first= Jack |date=August 9, 2011 |title= D.B. Cooper DNA results: "not a match" |url=https://abcnews.go.com/US/db-cooper-dna-results-match/story?id=14258726 |publisher= ABCNews.com|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200428114122/https://abcnews.go.com/US/db-cooper-dna-results-match/story?id=14258726 |archive-date=April 28, 2020 |access-date=August 9, 2011}}</ref> The FBI also made public a file of previously unreleased evidence, including Cooper's airplane ticket,<ref name="King5">{{cite news |last=Ingalls |first=Chris |date=November 1, 2007 |title=Investigators: F.B.I. unveils new evidence in D.B. Cooper case |work=[[KING-TV|King 5]] |url=http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_110107INK_cooper_chute_KS.1cbb87e02.html |access-date=March 11, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080105030027/http://www.king5.com/localnews/stories/NW_110107INK_cooper_chute_KS.1cbb87e02.html |archive-date=January 5, 2008}}</ref> composite sketches, fact sheets, and posted a request for information about Cooper's identification.<ref name="FBIVault7" /><ref name="HelpSolve" /><ref>{{cite web | title = Interview with lead FBI Investigator Larry Carr | publisher = Steven Rinehart | date = February 2, 2008 | url = http://www.stevenrinehart.com/uploads/LarryCarrInterview.mp3 | access-date = February 2, 2008 | archive-date = February 29, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080229090209/http://www.stevenrinehart.com/uploads/LarryCarrInterview.mp3 | url-status = dead }}</ref>

In March 2009, a group of "citizen sleuths" using GPS, satellite imagery, and other technologies unavailable in 1971,<ref name="isodbc" /> began reinvestigating components of the case. Known as the Cooper Research Team (CRT),<ref name="CitizenSleuths">{{cite web |title=Citizen Sleuths analyze the D.B. Cooper case |url=http://www.citizensleuths.com/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111125233157/http://www.citizensleuths.com/ |archive-date=November 25, 2011 |access-date=December 7, 2011 |publisher=citizensleuths.com}}</ref> the group included [[paleontologist]] Tom Kaye from the [[Burke Museum of Natural History and Culture]] in Seattle, scientific illustrator Carol Abraczinskas, [[computer scientist]] Sean Christo, and [[metallurgist]] Alan Stone. Although the CRT obtained little new information about the buried ransom money or Cooper's landing zone, they found, analyzed, and identified hundreds of organic and metallic particles on Cooper's tie.

Using [[electron microscopy]], the CRT identified ''[[Lycopodium]]'' spores, the source of which was likely pharmaceutical. The team also found minute particles of unalloyed [[titanium]] on the tie, along with particles of [[bismuth]], [[antimony]], [[cerium]], [[strontium sulfide]], [[Aluminium|aluminum]], and titanium-antimony alloys.<ref name="CitizenSleuths" /> The metal and [[rare earth mineral|rare-earth]] particles suggested Cooper may have worked for Boeing<ref name=":0">{{Cite web |last=Ingalls |first=Chris |date=January 13, 2017 |title=Scientists say they may have new evidence in D.B. Cooper case |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/01/13/scientists-say-they-may-have-new-evidence-db-cooper-case/96575858/ |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170530125909/https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation-now/2017/01/13/scientists-say-they-may-have-new-evidence-db-cooper-case/96575858/ |archive-date=May 30, 2017 |access-date=January 16, 2017 |website=USA Today}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite news |date=January 13, 2017 |title=New evidence: Was DB Cooper a Boeing employee? |work=KING-5 |url=http://www.king5.com/news/crime/new-evidence-was-db-cooper-boeing-employee/385924766 |url-status=dead |access-date=January 16, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170115013533/http://www.king5.com/news/crime/new-evidence-was-db-cooper-boeing-employee/385924766 |archive-date=January 15, 2017}}</ref> or another aeronautical engineering company, at a chemical manufacturing plant, or at a metal fabrication and production facility.<ref>{{Cite news |last=Johnson |first=Gene |date=November 23, 2011 |title=40 years later, DB Cooper's identity a mystery |work=KGW |agency=Associated Press |url=http://www.kgw.com/news/local/40-years-later-DB-Coopers-identity-a-mystery--134407308.html |url-status=dead |access-date=November 23, 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130921054223/http://www.kgw.com/news/local/40-years-later-DB-Coopers-identity-a-mystery--134407308.html |archive-date=September 21, 2013}}</ref>

The material with the most significance, explained Kaye, was the unalloyed [[titanium]]. During the 1970s, the use of pure titanium was rare and would only be used in aircraft fabrication facilities, or at chemical companies combining titanium and aluminum to store extremely corrosive substances.<ref>{{cite web |last=Ingalls |first=C |date=November 23, 2011 |title=40 years later, new evidence unveiled in DB Cooper case |work=KING king5.com |url=http://www.king5.com/news/investigators/40-years-after-the-crime-new-evidence-unveiled-in-DB-Cooper-case-134417003.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130909113338/http://www.king5.com/news/investigators/40-years-after-the-crime-new-evidence-unveiled-in-DB-Cooper-case-134417003.html |archive-date=September 9, 2013 |access-date=May 29, 2013 |publisher=King5.com}}</ref> The cerium and strontium sulfide were used by [[Boeing]]'s [[Boeing 2707|supersonic transport development project]], and by Portland factories in which [[cathode-ray tube]]s were manufactured, such as [[Teledyne]] and [[Tektronix]].<ref name=":3">{{Cite web |last=Williams |first=Kale |date=January 17, 2017 |title=D.B. Cooper could have worked at Portland-area tech firm, scientists say |url=https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/2017/01/latest_db_cooper_theory_skyjac.html |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201111190549/https://www.oregonlive.com/portland/2017/01/latest_db_cooper_theory_skyjac.html |archive-date=November 11, 2020 |access-date=December 11, 2020 |website=The Oregonian}}</ref> Cooper researcher Eric Ulis has speculated that the titanium-antimony alloys are linked to Rem-Cru Titanium Inc., a metals manufacturer and Boeing contractor.<ref name="petersen-king">{{Cite web | url=https://www.king5.com/article/news/investigations/tiny-particles-db-cooper-mystery/281-17ca7f6e-2f06-4997-a4ab-7fadde3abe13 | publisher=KING 5 | title=3 particles, 1 possible clue found in D.B. Cooper mystery | date=July 20, 2022 | access-date=December 23, 2022 |archive-date=October 29, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221029000832/https://www.king5.com/article/news/investigations/tiny-particles-db-cooper-mystery/281-17ca7f6e-2f06-4997-a4ab-7fadde3abe13 | url-status=live}}</ref>

===Hair samples===

FBI agents found two hair samples in Cooper's seat: a single strand of limb hair on the seat, and a single strand of brown Caucasian head hair on the headrest.{{sfn|Gray|2011b|pp=93}} The limb hair was destroyed after the FBI Crime Laboratory determined the sample lacked enough unique microscopic characteristics to be useful.{{r|vault_66|quote= "the limb hair possesses too few unique microscopic characteristics to be of value..."|page= 233}} However, the FBI Crime Laboratory determined the head hair was suitable for future comparison, and preserved the hair on a microscope slide.{{r|vault_66|quote= "The head hair clipping is suitable for significant comparison results."|page= 233}} During their attempts to build Cooper's DNA profile in 2002, the FBI discovered the hair sample had been lost.{{r|vault_52|page= 62}}
===Cigarette butts===

In the armrest ashtray of seat 18-E, FBI agents found eight Raleigh filter-tipped cigarette butts. The butts were sent to the FBI Crime Laboratory,{{r|vault_65|quote= "The Laboratory is also requested to examine the ashtray contents and specifically process any Raleigh filter tip cigarette butts for possible fingerprint identification or comparison."|page= 43}} but investigators were unable to find fingerprints and returned the butts to the Las Vegas field office.{{r|vault_66|quote= "No latent prints of value developed contents of ashtray."|page= 228}} In 1998, the FBI sought to extract DNA from the cigarette butts, but discovered the butts had been destroyed while in the custody of the Las Vegas field office.<ref>{{cite report|date= December 9, 1971|title= FBI Evidence Review|quote= "The DNA Unit was contacted and agreed to perform an unknown subject analysis on the numerous cigarette butts left by COOPER on the aircraft that day. They believed it likely that DNA could be recovered. Unfortunately, it was discovered that this evidence had been destroyed years earlier in Las Vegas."|url= https://vault.fbi.gov/D-B-Cooper%20/d.b.-cooper-part-51/view|publisher= Federal Bureau of Investigation|page= 196|access-date= November 7, 2022|archive-date= November 7, 2022|archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20221107182540/https://vault.fbi.gov/D-B-Cooper%20/d.b.-cooper-part-51/view|url-status= live}}</ref>

===Recovered ransom money===
[[File:Money stolen by D. B. Cooper.jpg|thumb|Portion of Brian Ingram's 1980 discovery]]
On February 10, 1980, eight-year-old Brian Ingram was vacationing with his family on the [[Columbia River]] at a beachfront known as Tina (or Tena) Bar, about {{convert|9|mi}} downstream from [[Vancouver, Washington]], and {{convert|20|mi}} southwest of Ariel. As he raked the sandy riverbank to build a campfire, he uncovered three packets of the ransom cash, totaling about $5,800.<ref>{{cite news
  | title = F.B.I. makes new bid to find 1971 skyjacker   | publisher = Associated Press  |website=sfgate.com | date = January 2, 2008 | url = http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/n/a/2008/01/01/national/a100412S30.DTL   | access-date = January 2, 2008 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080102170246/http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=%2Fn%2Fa%2F2008%2F01%2F01%2Fnational%2Fa100412S30.DTL   | archive-date = January 2, 2008 | url-status = dead }}</ref> The bills had disintegrated from lengthy exposure to the elements, but were still bundled in rubber bands.<ref>{{cite web |access-date=January 27, 2021 |title=D.B. Cooper skyjacking: Boy, 8, unearths ransom notes |url=https://www.coinworld.com/news/us-coins/2014/07/1971-skyjacking-cash-ransom-found-by-eight-year-old-in-1980.html |website=Coin World |date=July 21, 2014 |last1=Orzano |first1=M. |archive-date=March 8, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308023807/https://www.coinworld.com/news/us-coins/2014/07/1971-skyjacking-cash-ransom-found-by-eight-year-old-in-1980.html |url-status=live }}</ref> FBI technicians confirmed the money was indeed a portion of the ransom: two packets of 100 twenty-dollar bills each, and a third packet of 90, all arranged in the same order as when given to Cooper.{{r|vault_7|page=10–12}}<ref>{{cite web |access-date=January 27, 2021 |title=Boy to Split $5,520 of D. B. Cooper's Loot |url=https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-05-22-mn-6995-story.html |date=May 22, 1986 |website=Los Angeles Times |agency=Associated Press |archive-date=March 8, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210308084909/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1986-05-22-mn-6995-story.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The discovery caused new conjecture, and ultimately raised more questions than it answered. Initial statements by investigators and scientific consultants were founded on the assumption the bundled bills washed freely into the Columbia River from one of its many connecting tributaries. An [[United States Army Corps of Engineers|Army Corps of Engineers]] [[Hydrology|hydrologist]] noted the bills had disintegrated in a "rounded" fashion and were "matted together", indicating they "had been deposited by river action", as opposed to having been buried deliberately.{{sfn|Himmelsbach|Worcester|1986|p=110}} The finding supported the hypothesis Cooper had landed near the Washougal River, which merges with the Columbia upstream from the discovery site,{{sfn|Himmelsbach|Worcester|1986|pp=110–111}} and not in or near Lake Merwin, the Lewis River, or any of its tributaries feeding the Columbia River downstream from Tina Bar.

The "free-floating" hypothesis neither explained the ten bills missing from one packet, nor explained how the three packets remained together after separating from the rest of the money. Physical evidence was incompatible with geological evidence; Himmelsbach wrote free-floating bundles would have washed up on the bank "within a couple of years" of the hijacking; otherwise, the rubber bands would have long since deteriorated.{{r|vault_7|page=15}} Geological evidence suggested the bills arrived at Tina Bar after 1974, when the Army Corps of Engineers performed a [[dredging]] operation on a nearby section of the river. Geologist Leonard Palmer of [[Portland State University]] found two distinct layers of sand and sediment between the clay deposited on the riverbank by the dredge and the sand layer in which the bills were buried, indicating the bills arrived long after dredging had been completed.{{sfn|Himmelsbach|Worcester|1986|p=110}}<ref>{{cite web | title = Cash linked to 'D.B. Cooper' up for auction | url = https://www.nbcnews.com/id/wbna23889269 | work = [[NBC News]] | date = March 31, 2008 | access-date = March 31, 2008 | archive-date = February 4, 2014 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140204004838/http://www.nbcnews.com/id/23889269 | url-status = live }}</ref>

In late 2020, analysis of [[diatom]]s found on the bills suggests the bundles found at Tina Bar were not submerged in the river or buried dry at the time of the hijacking in November 1971. Only diatoms that bloom during springtime were found, indicating the money had entered the water at least several months after the hijacking.<ref>{{cite news | title = Scientist uncovers new, minuscule clues on DB Cooper ransom money found in Washington | work = [[KING-TV|King 5]] | last = Ingalls | first = Chris | date = August 3, 2020 | url = https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/scientist-uncovers-new-clues-db-cooper-ransom-money/281-86659a00-86c1-49fa-b6bf-04d6cd649318 | access-date = January 8, 2022 | archive-date = January 8, 2022 | archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220108174908/https://www.king5.com/article/news/local/scientist-uncovers-new-clues-db-cooper-ransom-money/281-86659a00-86c1-49fa-b6bf-04d6cd649318 | url-status = live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal|title=Diatoms constrain forensic burial timelines: case study with DB Cooper money|date=August 2020|journal=Scientific Reports|doi=10.1038/s41598-020-70015-z|last1=Kaye|first1=Thomas G.|last2=Meltzer|first2=Mark|volume=10|issue=1|page=13036|pmid=32747687|pmc=7400570|bibcode=2020NatSR..1013036K | issn=2045-2322}}</ref>

In 1986, after protracted negotiations, the recovered bills were divided equally between Brian Ingram and Northwest Orient's insurer Royal Globe Insurance;<ref name=nytimes>{{cite news | url=https://www.nytimes.com/1986/08/31/us/followup-on-the-news-d-b-cooper-undying-legend.html | title=FOLLOW-UP ON THE NEWS; D. B. Cooper: Undying Legend | newspaper=The New York Times | date=August 31, 1986 | last1=Haitch | first1=Richared | access-date=August 13, 2022 | archive-date=August 13, 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220813084259/https://www.nytimes.com/1986/08/31/us/followup-on-the-news-d-b-cooper-undying-legend.html | url-status=live }}</ref> the FBI retained 14 examples as evidence.<ref name=nymagtimeline/><ref>{{cite web |access-date=January 27, 2021 |title=Six Years Later Brian Ingram Gets a Piece of D.b. Cooper's Hijack Haul |url=https://people.com/archive/six-years-later-brian-ingram-gets-a-piece-of-d-b-coopers-hijack-haul-vol-25-no-25/ |website=People Magazine |date=June 23, 1986 |archive-date=February 4, 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210204015212/https://people.com/archive/six-years-later-brian-ingram-gets-a-piece-of-d-b-coopers-hijack-haul-vol-25-no-25/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Ingram sold fifteen of his bills at auction in 2008 for about $37,000 ({{Inflation|US|37000|2008|r=-3|fmt=eq}}).<ref>{{cite news |title = D.B. Cooper Skyjacking Cash Sold in Dallas Auction |agency = Associated Press |date = June 13, 2009 |url = https://www.foxnews.com/story/d-b-cooper-skyjacking-cash-sold-in-dallas-auction |access-date = June 14, 2008 |publisher = Fox News Channel |archive-date = October 20, 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20181020011508/https://www.foxnews.com/story/d-b-cooper-skyjacking-cash-sold-in-dallas-auction |url-status = live }}</ref>

The Columbia River ransom money remains the only confirmed physical evidence from the hijacking found outside the aircraft.<ref name=isodbc/>

===Parachutes===
During the hijacking, Cooper demanded and received two main parachutes and two reserve parachutes. The two reserve (front) parachutes were supplied by a local skydiving school and the two main (back) parachutes were supplied by a local pilot, Norman Hayden.{{r|vault_53|page=124|quote="Along with the two chestpack chutes from Sky Sports, located in Issaquah, the hijacker was provided with two backpack chutes by Norman Hayden, of Renton Aviation."}} Earl Cossey, the parachute rigger who packed all four parachutes brought to Cooper, described the two main parachutes as emergency bailout parachutes (as opposed to sporting parachutes used by skydivers).<ref>{{cite news |last1=Hawkins |first1=Robert |title=D.B. Cooper, is he at the bottom of Lake Merwin or walking the streets? |agency=The Seattle Times |date=October 3, 1976|quote="They were just emergency backpacks. Really, they're just used for aerobatic pilots or glider pilots or someone who would use a single parachute for a lifesaving event only. It wouldn't be like a sport parachute."}}</ref> Cossey further described the main parachutes as being like military parachutes because they were rigged to open immediately upon the ripcord being pulled and were incapable of being steered.{{r|vault_64|page=95|quote="Cossey further stated that the parachutes supplied to UNSUB were of non-steerable variety and therefore, had no steering devices whatever."}}{{r|vault_64|page=124|quote="They both were like military chutes in that they did not have sleeves."}} When the airplane landed in Reno, FBI agents discovered two parachutes Cooper left behind: one reserve (front) parachute and one main (back) parachute. The reserve parachute had been opened and three shroud lines had been cut out, but the main parachute left behind was still intact.{{r|vault_64|page=129|quote="One (1) orange or salmon-pink chest parachute. This chute was found on board the hijacked Northwest Airlines 727 jet Flight #305, in an opened condition. It is salmon or orange-pink in color; has no pilot chute and the shrouds have been cut away from the canvas pack and three of the lines had been cut out."}}{{r|vault_64|page=292|quote="On the floor directly in front of seat number 18D, the exterior canvas cover for a chest type parachute was observed...an opened parachute which apparently had been removed from the canvas parachute cover described above was found spread out over seats 17C and 17B."}} The unused main parachute was described by FBI agents as a Model NB6 (Navy Backpack 6) and is on display at the Washington State Historical Society Museum.{{r|vault_64|page=130|quote= One back parachute with a sage green nylon container Model NB6 (Navy back pack 6) with sage green nylon harness."}}<ref>{{cite news |last1=Pulkkinen |first1=Levi |title=D.B. Cooper parachute displayed for first time |url=https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/D-B-Cooper-parachute-displayed-for-first-time-4749773.php |access-date=18 October 2022 |agency=Seattle Post-Intelligencer |date=August 21, 2013 |archive-date=October 18, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221018143136/https://www.seattlepi.com/seattlenews/article/D-B-Cooper-parachute-displayed-for-first-time-4749773.php |url-status=live }}</ref>

One of the two reserve (front) parachutes Cooper was given was an unusable training parachute intended to only be used for classroom demonstrations.{{r|vault_53|page=124|quote="Emerick said the canopy had been sewn shut and the parachute was for ground demonstration only."}} According to Cossey, the reserve parachute's internal canopy was sewn together so skydiving students could get the feel of pulling a ripcord on a packed parachute without the canopy actually deploying.{{r|vault_64|page=110}} This non-functional reserve parachute was not found in the aircraft when it landed in Reno, causing FBI agents to speculate Cooper was not an experienced parachutist because someone with experience would have realized this reserve parachute was a "dummy parachute".<ref name=King5/><ref name="HelpSolve" /> However, within days of the hijacking, the FBI revealed that neither of the parachute harnesses Cooper was given had the necessary D-rings required to attach reserve parachutes.{{r|vault_53|quote="If it had been usable he could not have attached it to his parachute harness, which had no D rings for use with a chest pack."}}{{r|vault_11|page= 31|quote="Missing back pack is a model NB-6 (Navy Back Pack Six). Container is sage-green, nylon, and parachute is twenty-eight feet nylon white flight circular (nonsteerable). Back pack equipped with special foam cushion and has sage-green nylon harness with no 'D' rings to mount chest pack"}}<ref>{{cite news |last1=Painter |first1=John |title=Weather frustrates hijacker hunt |url=https://vault.fbi.gov/D-B-Cooper%20/d.b.-cooper-part-54/view |agency=The Oregonian |date=November 27, 1971 |quote="In Seattle, persons familiar with the chutes said the reserve chest chutes could not have attached to the main chute's harness." |access-date=October 27, 2022 |archive-date=October 27, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221027190455/https://vault.fbi.gov/D-B-Cooper%20/d.b.-cooper-part-54/view |url-status=live }}</ref> Although Cooper lacked the ability to attach this "dummy" parachute to his main harness as a reserve parachute, it was not found in the airplane, so what he did with it is unknown.<ref>{{cite report |date= November 26, 1971 |title= Initial FBI Inspection of Remaining Evidence |url= https://vault.fbi.gov/D-B-Cooper%20/D.B.%20Cooper%20Part%2017/view |publisher= Federal Bureau of Investigation |page= 125 |access-date= October 18, 2022 |archive-date= October 18, 2022 |archive-url= https://web.archive.org/web/20221018030642/https://vault.fbi.gov/D-B-Cooper%20/D.B.%20Cooper%20Part%2017/view |url-status= live }}</ref>{{r|vault_53|quote="Emrick explained that in order to be able to use his chestpacks, the jumper must have two "D-rings" on the backpack harness to which the chestpack can be attached. The backpacks obtained from Renton Aviation did not have these "D-rings". Earl Cossey, 30, or Seattle, who made the backpack chutes, confirmed this. Authorities were unable to explain the absence of the unusable chestpack."}} Cossey speculated Cooper removed the sewn-together canopy and used the empty reserve container as an extra money bag.{{r|vault_64|page=202|quote="Mr. Cossey said that if the hijacker opened of the chest packs on the airplane he probably would remove the parachute and put the money in the chest pack."}} Tina Mucklow's testimony was in line with Cossey's speculation, stating she recalled Cooper attempting to pack money inside a parachute container.{{r|vault_64|quote="she recalls that he was occupied with...attempting to in some way pack the money in a parachute container in order that he could in some way attach it to his body along with the regular parachute straps."|page=155}}

In November 1978, a deer hunter found a 727's instruction placard for lowering the aft airstair. The placard was found near a logging road about {{convert|13|mi}} east of [[Castle Rock, Washington]], north of Lake Merwin, but within Flight 305's basic flight path.{{sfn|Himmelsbach|Worcester|1986|p=108}}