The real story of D.B. Cooper
This last Easter Egg isn’t isn’t tied to any Marvel comic book, movie, or series. Rather, this is about the airplane bandit whom, according to “Glorious Purpose,” was another alias of Loki. But not only was D.B. Cooper an actual person, his crime and getaway was just as mysterious as his true identity.
On November 24, 1971, the day before Thanksgiving, a man dressed in a dark business suit, white shirt, and a black clip-on tie boarded Flight 305 from Portland to Seattle. He did indeed order a bourbon and soda from a stewardess before handing her note. He did, in fact, politely tell her, “Miss, you’d better look at that note. I have a bomb,” indicating the suitcase placed next to him. Identifying himself as “D.B. Cooper,” he demanded $200,000 divided into $20 bills of “negotiable American currency,” along with four parachutes, in exchange for the passengers’ release. Once the plane landed, the FBI agreed to his demands.
After the passengers left, Cooper requested the pilots to take off for Mexico, telling them to climb no higher than 10,000 feet and fly no faster than 200 mph. After putting on a pair of sunglasses, Cooper took his bags of stolen cash, opened the rear exit of the plane, and leapt out somewhere on route to Reno, Nevada. He was never seen or heard from again.
Fifty years later, the case of D.B. Cooper, also known as the Northwest Hijacking, remains one of the most baffling unsolved crimes in American history. The only pieces physical evidence includes three packets of the ransom money totaling $5,800 that was found on the banks of the Columbia River, instructions on how to lower the plane’s rear stairwell that was in Cooper’s possession, Cooper’s tie, his tie pin, and eight cigarette butts which later went missing. Not even Cooper’s fingerprints – of which there were many – helped to identify him. Of the eleven possible suspects police did apprehend, none of them matched the hijacker’s description. It is believed that 45 year-long manhunt for Cooper and his possible landing spots, which also involved the US Air Force, ended up costing more than what Cooper actually stole.
Some believe that Cooper never survived the jump. Others believe he’s still alive, though he’d be in his nineties today. He’s been mythologized as a kind of American Robin Hood in movies, television, books, and music, though Loki is certainly the first to postulate that he was an actual god. There is one interesting little tidbit however. It is believed that Cooper named himself after one Dan Cooper, a fictional ace pilot featured in the pages of the French comic Tintin. In fact, that’s actually how Cooper identified himself during the hijacking. So yes, there is a comic book related connection to one of history’s most audacious robbers after all.
Will Loki have other connections to mysterious events throughout history? We’ll have to tune in next time to find out.
Any more clues or Easter Eggs from Loki, episode 1, that we might have missed? What are some of your theories about what may happen next? Don’t forget to leave your comments down below.