For decades, the infamous D.B. Cooper hijacking has captivated the public’s imagination, with numerous theories and suspects but no definitive answers.
Now, fresh evidence is pointing to a shocking breakthrough that could finally unmask the elusive hijacker.
Microscopic particles found on a clip-on tie left behind by Cooper have turned the investigation in a completely new direction, possibly leading to the suspect’s true identity.
The Hijacking that Shook America
On November 24, 1971, a well-dressed, middle-aged man using the name “Dan Cooper” boarded Northwest Airlines Flight 305 traveling from Portland, Oregon, to Seattle, Washington.
Shortly after takeoff, he calmly informed a flight attendant that he had a bomb in his briefcase.
He demanded $200,000 in cash, four parachutes, and a safe escape route.
Upon landing in Seattle, the ransom was delivered, and Cooper instructed the pilots to refuel the plane and fly toward Mexico.
In a daring escape, Cooper opened the plane’s rear staircase at 10,000 feet, jumped out with the money and parachutes, and disappeared into the night.
Despite extensive investigations, Cooper was never found, and the case remains one of the most famous unsolved mysteries in American history.
A Clue Left Behind: The Clip-on Tie
Among the few clues left behind by Cooper was a simple clip-on tie.
Before leaping from the plane, Cooper removed it, and it was found by investigators after the hijacking.
This seemingly mundane item, however, has now become a key piece of evidence that could lead to solving the case.
For years, forensic tests were conducted on the tie to uncover any trace evidence.
However, it wasn’t until recent retesting by scientist Tom Kaye and independent investigator Eric Ulis that something extraordinary was discovered.
A tiny speck of chemical residue on the tie could now offer crucial insight into Cooper’s identity.
Rare Metal Particles Point to Aerospace Connections
Kaye and Ulis have been analyzing the tie for over a decade, testing it for chemicals, metals, and other particles that might point to Cooper’s profession.
In their most recent findings, they identified traces of rare metals used in the aerospace industry, including titanium and stainless steel particles associated with cold-rolling processes used in metalworking.
These discoveries fit with the long-standing theory that Cooper may have had some connection to the aerospace industry, given his extensive knowledge of aviation and aircraft.
One possibility that has emerged is that Cooper may have worked as a metallurgist at a now-defunct facility called Rem-Cru Titanium, which supplied parts to Boeing in the 1960s and 70s.
Vince Peterson: The Engineer Under Suspicion
After conducting an exhaustive search through Rem-Cru’s employment records, Ulis pointed to Vince Peterson, a former engineer at the company, as a leading suspect.
Peterson, who passed away in 2002, was 52 years old at the time of the hijacking and matched eyewitness descriptions of Cooper.
However, Peterson’s daughter has vehemently denied the possibility, insisting that her father would never have abandoned his family to commit such a crime.
But the case took a new twist with the discovery of another rare particle on Cooper’s tie: a compound of thorium and uranium, linked to experimental nuclear reactor technology from the 1960s.
This finding shifted the investigation away from Rem-Cru and led Ulis and Kaye to investigate new leads.
The Oak Ridge National Laboratory Connection
Ulis now believes that Cooper may have worked at the Oak Ridge National Laboratory in Tennessee, where much of the U.S. nuclear research was conducted during the late 1960s.
Oak Ridge was heavily involved in molten salt reactor experiments and even worked on developing a nuclear-powered aircraft for the military—a potential connection to Boeing and Cooper’s aviation knowledge.
Furthermore, Cooper was known to have smoked Raleigh filter-tipped cigarettes during the hijacking, and the matchbook he used came from a chain of airport restaurants called SkyChefs.
One of these SkyChefs locations was near Knoxville, close to Oak Ridge, suggesting that Cooper may have had ties to the area.
An Intriguing Family Link
In another twist, Ulis discovered that the name “Dan Cooper” might not have been entirely random.
A long-time employee of Oak Ridge, Ralph Cooper, had a brother named Dan Cooper, who tragically died in 1960.
This could be a compelling connection, with Ulis speculating that D.B. Cooper might have used the name as an alias in reference to the tragic death of the real Dan Cooper.
While there is no concrete evidence linking this incident to the hijacking, Ulis believes it is a lead worth exploring further.
He also suggested that the choice of the name might have been a subtle nod or a subconscious reference to the family’s past.
Motive and the Grudge Against Oak Ridge
The motive behind the hijacking remains unclear, though Ulis has a theory.
He suggests that Cooper’s grudge may have been related to significant layoffs at Oak Ridge and Union Carbide in the late 1960s and early 1970s.
These layoffs were the result of federal government sanctions that drastically reduced funding for projects, including the molten salt reactor experiment.
Ulis believes that Cooper, possibly an engineer or metallurgist who worked at Oak Ridge, could have been laid off, leading to financial strain and possibly motivating him to commit the heist.
Moving Closer to the Truth
With the new evidence uncovered from Cooper’s tie, Ulis is more confident than ever that the mystery could be solved.
The ongoing investigation, driven by scientific analysis and a detailed examination of Cooper’s past, could finally bring this decades-old case to a close.
“I feel like we’re getting closer to solving this mystery once and for all,” Ulis shared, expressing his optimism about cracking the case before the end of the year.
As the investigation continues, the possibility of discovering the true identity of D.B. Cooper seems within reach, and it all started with a simple tie left behind on a hijacked plane over 50 years ago.