The Hijacking of American Flight 119: How D.B. Cooper Inspired a Skyjacking Craze and the FBI's Battle to Stop It

by John Wigger

He pulled off what some deem the crime of the skyjacking a commercial jetliner, collecting a ransom of $200,000, parachuting off the aft stairs of the Boeing 727 into the night, and simply disappearing. Since November 1971, "D.B. Cooper"no one knows his real name or identityhas become a figure of enduring fascination and obsession. The FBI pursued him for over forty years, before closing the case and leaving it unsolved.

Unsolved, perhaps, but much admired. D.B. Cooper's exploit over the skies of the American Northwest has inspired books, films, and endless speculation. What's less known is that it inspired imitators. None were more daring than the hijacker of American Airlines Flight 119. After commandeering the flight from St. Louis with a machine gun and collecting $502,500 in ransom, he parachuted out over Indiana. Unlike Cooper, he was tracked down.

In The Hijacking of American Flight 119 , John Wigger explores the wave of hijackings that swept over commercial flight between 1961 and 1972. One hijacker ran across the ramp in Reno, Nevada with a pillowcase over his head, gun in hand, to seize a United Airlines flight. Another collected a large ransom in Washington, D.C. before jumping over Honduras. Yet another rode a bicycle across the tarmac with a rifle strapped to the handlebars. Motivations involved an admixture of ideology, greed, derring-do, and a desperate need to be somebody. What they had in common was that their exploits transfixed the nation's attention, bringing about a transformation in airline security that remains with us still.

With its focus on the parachute hijackers, Wigger's book gathers together the stories of this period of daring criminality and recounts them in gripping fashion, showing their effect on the public, the media, and law enforcement. Using never-before- published interviews and first-hand accounts, he brings to life one of the most chaotic and fascinating periods in American aviation history.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, True Crime, Crime, Aviation, American History, Biography

298 pages, Kindle Edition

First published November 1, 2023

Reviews

[Namera [The Literary Invertebrate] · Rating 4 out of 5]

⤅ Non-fiction Book of the Month: April 2023

I've talked before about my love of reading about aviation - crashes, disappearances, and in this case, hijackings. The late 1960s and early 1970s saw an epidemic of skyjacked planes, of which the earlier ones were because radical socialists or Black Panther-type figures wanted to go to the paradise they thought was Cuba. (Spoiler alert: they were universally disappointed).

It's crazy in the post-9/11 world to think about how lax airport security was. In multiple cases, teenaged boys and men armed with nothing more than e.g. nail clippers were able to hijack planes! And it seems passengers were rarely alarmed, because it was generally the case that they'd just spend a night in a Cuban hotel and return to the US the next day with a great story. The 1960s and 70s were truly something else.

Things started to change from around 1971 onwards, and skyjackings became more about extortion. DB Cooper is of course the headline figure, being the only such person whose body - dead or alive - was never recovered. This shift also heralded increasing violence on the part of the hijackers, and people did start to die, so air piracy (what a term) is something law enforcement cracked down on.

Two issues with this book. Firstly, despite having DB Cooper in the title (presumably in an effort to draw attention and boost sales) very little of this book is devoted to Cooper. Like ten pages of 300, max, which is absolutely not what I was expecting and has left me feeling a little cheated. The book also feels much shorter than it should've been, because it was missing out details that could have helped - like the future lives and careers of the people involved. (Then again, you may consider that second point a benefit, because it means the book was very tightly focused on the Flight 119 hijacking).

119 was the last of the 'parachute hijackings', when the perpetrator would demand money and a parachute to escape the plane. The author does an interesting thing here where he tells the story in snippets, broken up with the story of other hijackings. Not a structure I was expecting but I think it works. And it means that all the utterly insane twists to the story - like the Cadillac, my jaw actually DROPPED at that - have more oomph.

Good to learn too that the author is a pilot himself and actually an aviation professor.

[Xander Kennedy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I need to begin by acknowledging that as much as I love to read, I usually struggle getting into nonfiction books. For me there is often something much less compelling about the presentation of real facts and information as compared to a quality storyteller's ability to invent a world for me to experience for a few hundred pages. With that said, I do appreciate what Wigger has accomplished here and don't at all mind now being much more informed about the history of aviation and specifically a few-year span filled with hijackings.
I mentioned above how much I appreciate a good story, and the first half of this book does give me that. We're following the interesting details of McNally's hijacking of Flight 119 and Wigger does well to splice in relevant information of various elements of the industry at the time while he pulls us through the, at times harrowing, experiences for those in and connected to that flight. What follows this part of the book, though, while still interesting is not at all a continuous story. We get bits and pieces of so many different things: many other hijackings, this history of things like parachutes, US-Cuba relations, various advancements in jet technology, and on and on. Again, much of this is fun trivia to know, but it didn't work to keep me particularly invested in the book.
Side note, as someone who lives in Columbia, MO, it was satisfying to periodically see references to my home town from this MU professor.

[Andrew · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great, detailed review of airline hijackings which uses one of the successful imitators of D.B. Cooper in parachuting from a jet as an example.

The book does a good job of detailing issues with specific types of aircraft. And though I've flown for a long time, I was unaware of the history of and many details involving parachute use.

Though I lived through the 1960s and 1970s I had forgotten just how many airline hijackings there were, starting with people aiming to get to Cuba. Indeed there were so many that Pacific Southwest Airlines (PSA) had a plane hijacked on July 4, 1972 -- and another the next day.

One passenger on PSA, Franz Lingnau, became the first person hijacked twice on consecutive days. "I'd like to know the odds on this," he later said. "I spent 18 hours on hijacked planes and I can drive to Burbank (from Sacramento) faster than that."

What changed as the hijackings progressed after D.B. Cooper parachuted into the night in November, 1971, was the wave of attempts at extortion -- and the parachute jumps.

[Prof Tuck · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of our best working historians (American Saint, PTL), John Wigger now takes us up in the air to explore the phenomena made famous by D.B. Cooper. Based on extensive NEW interviews with flight attendants, pilots, FBI agents and so many more, this book takes you not only through the riveting tale of Flight 119, but also so many more great stories. If you've never heard of the golden age of hijacking or see yourself as DB Cooper sleuth, this book will have you shaking your head throughout it all. Amazing, highly readable, and enthralling.

[Steve Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

a well researched history of a formative era in world commercial aviation. it was interesting how long it took for the FAA and world aviation regulatory agencies to institute proactive screening methods to detect hijackers and weapons.
written with good pace, it was interesting to read his analysis on whether DB Cooper survived the jump (read the book!).
and of course we know how easy it was for the 9/11 hijackrs to get flight training (no one red flagged their lack of interest in learning to land aircraft?) and then circumvent security by starting travel at regional airports.

[Martin Mcnally · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a fantastic book about D.B. Cooper and The Last Copycat. A must read for people interested in the hijacking in November 1971 and June 1972. Martin McNally was inspired by Cooper's crime and thought he could do it too and get away; he was wrong and got arrested and did 37 years in Federal prisons. Buy this book because it'll rise in Value and it's a good investment. You can also Google: "Who is American Skyjacker"

[Michael · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The Hijacking of American Flight 119: How D.B. Cooper Inspired a Hijacking Craze and the F.B.I’s Battle to Stop It” by John Wigger dives into a mostly forgotten hijacking from the early 1970’s. Rich in detail surrounding the hijacking and others that peppered the early 70’s, it’s a fast-paced read. It does not idolize Cooper; he’s almost an afterthought. As is the role of the FBI, given their placement in the book’s title. Generally, an intriguing read.

[Jack Barnett · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting read. The last couple of chapters felt a bit like filler. There's not much Cooper stuff in there if that's what you're looking for, certainly nothing new, just an overview, the main focus is 119.

[Kerry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed all the information and the storytelling of this book. However, I felt like sometimes, the stories were being told out of order and I wish the book had been told in a more chronological order.

[Dana Buckley · Rating 1 out of 5]

Could not finish it...

[Adam Bloch · Rating 3 out of 5]

Very interesting piece of American, flight, and even Cuban history. I heard about DB Cooper at an event and I wanted to learn more. This was educational and kept my attention too.

[Matt Lee · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought this book was going to be about DB Cooper, but instead it mostly centered on other hijackings during the same time period.

It was still interesting, but not as interesting as DB!

[Rita Fleming · Rating 3 out of 5]

it was entertaining lead on a wild goose chase with the author meeting some interesting characters along the way. I enjoyed it.

[Eve-Marie Lanza · Rating 4 out of 5]

✈️ Unravel the mysteries of the 1960s skyjacking craze in "The Hijacking of American Flight 119" by John Wigger. From hijackers to law enforcement, this book delves into a tumultuous period in aviation history. Buckle up for a thrilling ride through the past! 📚 Check out the full review on my blog: https://eve-marie.com/reads/the-hijac...

[Jay Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a great read. The stories in this book discuss the hijackings that were inspired by D.B. Cooper. Dr. Wigger, who is an aviation historian, has written a book that will appeal to not only aviation historians, but the general reader as well. Highly recommend!