CHS_CG
04-03-2008, 08:27 PM
Posted: 5:58 PM Apr 3, 2008
Last Updated: 7:18 PM Apr 3, 2008
Reporter: Kristen Ross
Email Address: ross@kbtx.com
0 comments
http://www.kbtx.com/home/headlines/17275759.html
It's been more than 35 years since D.B. Cooper hijacked a plane and bailed out over the Pacific Northwest with a large sum of cash.
So what ever happened to Cooper?
Last week some kids in Washington discovered a parachute believed to be Cooper's escape canopy. But after speaking with some parachute experts, the FBI says it's simply not the one Cooper used more than three decades ago
The case has baffled many for years, and remains the only unsolved hijacking to date. But there's a local twist to the mystery. Now a military historian is linking the chute to the father of a former Bryan police officer.
It's been a while since the Walling family sat down at the table together to relive some of the memories of the good old days..
But this week, the past collided with the present, and the family photo album has been passed around quite a bit, since Choya Walling got a call from a reporter in Washington asking about his dad.
"He said, 'did you know he bailed out of a plane in Washington'," Choya said. "I said yes I did, and he said, 'well I think they found his parachute'. I couldn't even believe it, it's been 63 years since it happened."
According to reports U.S. Marine Floyd T. Walling, also known as "T" headed out in Dec of 1945 from Seattle to Portland when he came across a patch of bad weather and was forced to bail out in an area that D.B. Cooper would make infamous more than 25 years later.
"I never really considered the fact that D.B. Cooper's flight path and my dad's flight path were in the same area," Choya said. "That had never crossed my mind."
Choya says the first person he called after hearing the news was his mother Jo.
"I pulled the album out and read what was written in the paper at that time," Jo said.
"Missing Flier", and "Pilot, 2 Planes Still Missing" were some of the headlines of the day.
But it's "T's" pilot report that reveals the real details of his 1945 adventure.
"When he bailed out he worked his way down the mountain, used it to get out of the rain, to build a fire, and used it to dry off, and then he left it there," Choya said.
"T" found his way in town about a day later, but his parachute was never recovered. That is of course until now.
"I was so shocked to hear that they found what they believe to be his parachute," Jo said.
T. Walling passed away back in 1999. The family received the call about this parachute on April Fool's day, just one day before "T" would have turned 86. The timing of the news around his birthday has been really ironic and bittersweet for his family members.
One of the things that helped experts determine that the parachute found in Washington was not Cooper's was the make of the fabric. The chute found was made of silk, and experts say Cooper's chute was made of nylon.
Last Updated: 7:18 PM Apr 3, 2008
Reporter: Kristen Ross
Email Address: ross@kbtx.com
0 comments
http://www.kbtx.com/home/headlines/17275759.html
It's been more than 35 years since D.B. Cooper hijacked a plane and bailed out over the Pacific Northwest with a large sum of cash.
So what ever happened to Cooper?
Last week some kids in Washington discovered a parachute believed to be Cooper's escape canopy. But after speaking with some parachute experts, the FBI says it's simply not the one Cooper used more than three decades ago
The case has baffled many for years, and remains the only unsolved hijacking to date. But there's a local twist to the mystery. Now a military historian is linking the chute to the father of a former Bryan police officer.
It's been a while since the Walling family sat down at the table together to relive some of the memories of the good old days..
But this week, the past collided with the present, and the family photo album has been passed around quite a bit, since Choya Walling got a call from a reporter in Washington asking about his dad.
"He said, 'did you know he bailed out of a plane in Washington'," Choya said. "I said yes I did, and he said, 'well I think they found his parachute'. I couldn't even believe it, it's been 63 years since it happened."
According to reports U.S. Marine Floyd T. Walling, also known as "T" headed out in Dec of 1945 from Seattle to Portland when he came across a patch of bad weather and was forced to bail out in an area that D.B. Cooper would make infamous more than 25 years later.
"I never really considered the fact that D.B. Cooper's flight path and my dad's flight path were in the same area," Choya said. "That had never crossed my mind."
Choya says the first person he called after hearing the news was his mother Jo.
"I pulled the album out and read what was written in the paper at that time," Jo said.
"Missing Flier", and "Pilot, 2 Planes Still Missing" were some of the headlines of the day.
But it's "T's" pilot report that reveals the real details of his 1945 adventure.
"When he bailed out he worked his way down the mountain, used it to get out of the rain, to build a fire, and used it to dry off, and then he left it there," Choya said.
"T" found his way in town about a day later, but his parachute was never recovered. That is of course until now.
"I was so shocked to hear that they found what they believe to be his parachute," Jo said.
T. Walling passed away back in 1999. The family received the call about this parachute on April Fool's day, just one day before "T" would have turned 86. The timing of the news around his birthday has been really ironic and bittersweet for his family members.
One of the things that helped experts determine that the parachute found in Washington was not Cooper's was the make of the fabric. The chute found was made of silk, and experts say Cooper's chute was made of nylon.