D. B. COOPER: THE MAN WHO VANISHED INTO THIN AIR

On November 24, 1971, a man who called himself D. B. Cooper boarded a Northwest Orient Airlines flight from Portland to Seattle. He was dressed in a suit and carried a briefcase. Nobody suspected that he was about to pull off one of the most mysterious crimes in American history.

Shortly after takeoff, Cooper handed a note to a flight attendant. It read: “I have a bomb.” He calmly told the crew that he wanted $200,000 in cash, four parachutes, and a fuel truck ready to refuel the plane in Seattle. The airline agreed. When the plane landed, the ransom was delivered, and Cooper gave away the passengers. He then ordered the pilots to take off again and fly towards Mexico.

Somewhere over the forests of Washington, in the middle of the night, Cooper did the unthinkable. He put on a parachute, grabbed the money, and jumped out of the plane. No one ever saw him again. Despite one of the largest manhunts in FBI history, no clear trace of Cooper was ever found. Investigators went through thousands of tips, but nothing led to a definitive answer.

Over the years, theories have emerged. Some believe he died in the wilderness, others think he got away with the crime and lived under a new identity. In 1980, a young boy found $5,800 in decayed bills buried near a river — money that matched the ransom. But the rest of the cash was never recovered.

The case remains open, and D. B. Cooper has become a legend. Who was he? How did he disappear? Did he survive? More than 50 years later, the mystery continues.

1. ransom [’rænsəm] — выкуп;

2. briefcase [’briːfkeɪs] — портфель, чемоданчик;

3. parachute [’pærəʃuːt] — парашют;

4. manhunt [’mænhʌnt] — розыск, масштабная облава;

5. wilderness [’wɪldənəs] — дикая местность.

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