Synopsis
My Father Was D.B. Cooper: An American Story by Bradley S. Collins is both a family memoir and Collins's case for identifying his father, Jack Collins, as the infamous hijacker who parachuted from Northwest Orient Flight 305 on November 24, 1971. Collins's revelation began around Thanksgiving 2010 when he and his wife watched television coverage of the anniversary of the hijacking. Seeing the familiar Cooper composite sketch, Collins suddenly told his wife, "That guy was my father." He also revealed that his father's brother, Romaine "Bud" Collins, a Northwest Orient jet captain, had allegedly been involved.
The book's central evidence comes from Collins's childhood memories and a photograph he took of his father and Uncle Bud only 25 days before the hijacking, on October 30, 1971. Collins recalls being taken from the Edmonds ferry dock to Snohomish Airport by the two men and flown by Bud around the Puget Sound area. They repeatedly circled between the Seattle and Everett areas before landing at Renton Municipal Airport, only a few miles from Sea-Tac. Collins remembers his father and uncle discussing calculations during the flight. After lunch, Collins photographed the two men beside their airplane. He believes the flight was a "final dress rehearsal" for the Cooper operation, particularly because it involved practicing the geography and flight patterns around Seattle and Renton shortly before the hijacking.
Collins portrays Jack as possessing several characteristics consistent with Cooper. He was an experienced parachutist, reportedly having made hundreds of jumps, was familiar with aviation and the Pacific Northwest, physically resembled the Cooper composite, and was approximately the right age and build. Collins also argues that his father's financial circumstances and adventurous personality provided a possible motive. His theory becomes considerably more unusual because of Bud's alleged involvement. As a Northwest Orient captain, Bud would have possessed detailed knowledge of the Boeing 727, airline procedures and the Seattle-area aviation environment, potentially providing the insider expertise necessary for the crime.
Collins also discusses his father's whereabouts around the hijacking, his alleged disappearance for several days, and his reported contact with the FBI. He interprets these circumstances, along with his father's personality and subsequent behavior, as additional evidence that Jack was Cooper. The book attempts to address what happened to the ransom and why the brothers would have remained silent for decades.
The strongest aspect of the Collins theory is therefore the combination of circumstances: Jack's parachuting experience, physical resemblance, aviation knowledge, geographic familiarity, possible motive, his relationship with Bud, Bud's position as a Northwest Orient captain, and the highly unusual October 30 flight immediately preceding the hijacking. The photograph of the brothers beside the airplane is the centerpiece of Collins's case.
However, the book does not provide conclusive forensic evidence identifying Jack Collins as Cooper. The case rests heavily on Bradley's memories and interpretations formed decades after the event. There is no publicly established DNA match, ransom-money connection, or other definitive physical evidence tying Jack to Flight 305. Consequently, My Father Was D.B. Cooper is best viewed not as a solved-case investigation but as a son's detailed argument that his father was D.B. Cooper and that his uncle was his accomplice.
What makes the theory particularly interesting is its insider component. Unlike many Cooper suspects, Jack Collins allegedly had both the parachuting ability and a close family connection to someone who understood Northwest Orient's aircraft and operations. Whether the October 30 flight represents an innocent family outing or the rehearsal Collins believes it was remains one of the most intriguing unanswered questions surrounding the theory.