D.B. Cooper Day
A mysterious figure who vanished with daring defiance, leaving an enigma that continues to captivate minds and fuel speculation.
Leverage the D.B. Cooper mystique to drive foot traffic to regional attractions, craft breweries, and local events in the Pacific Northwest during November.
- 'Unsolved Mystery Night' at your local brewery—craft beers named after the heist
- D.B. Cooper Festival road-trip guide: Visit Ariel, WA and solve a 50-year-old cold case
- True crime fans: Test your detective skills with D.B. Cooper trivia and evidence deep-dives
- Victor 23 Brewery spotlight: How one craft brewery turned aviation history into IPA gold
Back in 1971, a mysterious man hijacks an airplane, steals a briefcase full of money, and parachutes away to a daring escape. The ticket purchased for the man was registered to a ‘Dan Cooper’ which turned out to be an alias, but the name for the mystery man turned into D.B. Cooper – the initials which arose from the transcription error of a news reporter.
The man behind the only unsolved airplane hijacking in US history, D.B. Cooper’s short flight from Portland to Seattle only cost $20 – but he left the plane with $200,000 in a briefcase by parachuting out. Incidentally, that amount of money would be worth over $1.4 million in today’s terms.
In the middle of flight, “Cooper” told a flight attendant he had a bomb and demanded the money along with four parachutes. He is believed to have landed somewhere around a small town called Ariel, Washington, near Lake Merwin. This small hamlet of Ariel has made D.B. Cooper their claim to fame and now hosts D.B. Cooper Day each year on the same date.
The festival in Ariel, Washington celebrates D.B. Cooper Day and considers evidence such as some of the money that was found in 1980 in the Columbia River. Other clues lead to a potential niece of Cooper as well as what was believed to be Cooper’s necktie.
Visit the D.B. Cooper Day Festival
Join in on the fun and mystery by heading to the little town of Ariel, Washington and popping into the Ariel General Store and Tavern to see what festivities are on. In past years, D.B. Cooper Day has been celebrated with panel discussions, socializing and mystery solving. So join in on the fun and visit the town that has been originally thought to be associated with this mysterious hijacking, robbery and disappearance.
Try out the Victor 23 Craft Brewery
It might even be fun to try out a beer at the Victor 23 Craft Brewery, which was named for the flight path of the plane that D.B. Cooper hijacked. Serving up beers like an IPA called Skyjacker or a Pilsner that is named after one of the flight attendants, the Schaffner Pilsner, this pub embraces the adventure that is inherent in this history of the Pacific Northwest.
Solve the D.B. Cooper Mystery
In honor of D.B. Cooper Day, those who are feeling rather sleuthy might want to get to researching everything to do with this 50 year old cold case and see what evidence they might find to solve the mystery. Who knows what kind of clues might turn up?