My two cents on Dona and the weather:

Dona was a true creature of the Cooper Vortex. Everything she said about Norjak she said with authority - she was never open to a discussion about what she saw, heard, or was told. Period.

That said, she was a kind and generous person. I liked her, and I loved her parties.

As for the weather, Dona - and others - say it was hellacious. Maybe it was for a few moments as a storm cell moved through.

Did she hear a jet plane? Maybe. But unlikely. 305 at 4K? Maybe. But unlikely - even the feds say 305 was further west, approaching Battleground and at 10K. The F-106s? Maybe. But unlikely, as they were climbing to 20K as per Cliff Ammerman's statements.

Lastly, in general Dona gave kinda-useful, kinda-truthful information about Norjak. Meyer and I spent half an afternoon chasing down her claims on the Amboy chute, to no avail. BTW: getting from the Arial Tavern to Amboy is a long-haul. Finding a bridge across the Lewis is tough - either drive back to Woodland, or head east and wind one's way through the Yale Valley. About an hour either way. Yet, Green Mountain, the alleged landing site of the Amboy chute and DBC, is but a stone's throw from the back door of the tavern across the Lewis River valley.

Did DB Cooper actually come to the Tavern? Dona said he did.

Did Dona confuse Mike Cooper with Dan Cooper? She might have. I know I was confused when she told me about Mike, as I hadn't seen the full passenger list, yet.

How were the placards mounted on the exterior of the 727's? Weren't they "glued" on? Or were they riveted?

None that I know of are riveted. I'm sure there is a difference in the adhesive used especially to the rear of the aircraft where fuel can get on them. typically, placards are placed when the plane is near completion..

Below is a pic of the port side side with a placard..

How were the placards mounted on the exterior of the 727's? Weren't they "glued" on? Or were they riveted?

Nothing would be on the opposite side of the stairwell...everything appears to be installed in line possibly on a wire system linking together. it's all mechanical and hydraulics.

8 years later the FBI wouldn't take 3 seconds for anything. plus, another placard was being looked at during the same period. phone calls and fax machines were the communications used. we see things stretched out in the 302's doesn't mean they were 24/7 on that one subject. they investigated with a search, sent the placard to NWO and waited for a response from them and Boeing.

I can't see it in the video or the still shots. IMO it's not on that wall. you push the main lever to release. pull a red handle to release. it's two different controls.

Here is a super blowup. it's distorted but you can see a shadow below the main door and nothing beside the lower bottom right of the door. you see a gap in the trim but that's not it either.

Quote

The FBI stated that they believed the placard was from 305

Believed is not confirmed...no, not all 727-100 aircraft had a separate control or emergency function. zero, were on the 200 series. this is what causes the problem.

1) the small panel on the wall has instructions on the front.
2) the larger placard could of been supplied to go above the panel giving further instructions.
3) the panel can not been seen in the stairwell. I know you use the poor quality to help support the possibility of it being obscured but I don't see it along with others.
4) a placard can be seen in the stairwell even with the poor quality photo. why didn't that one come off?

I  fully understand exactly where the placard goes. it's not relevant if it doesn't belong on 305. how it got on the ground and found would become the real mystery. I suggest calling Boeing back and asking specific questions about the placard and it's reason.

It does not appear that there is a two-hole emergency release panel on the 305 jet next to the main access door based upon the poor quality screenshot that I've seen. That said, I wouldn't bet my life on it because I do see a dark splotch or shadow where I would expect to see the two holes.

The thing to consider is that the Hicks' placard seems to reference a somewhat different version of the emergency release system. Therefore, do we really know what we're dealing with here? Could the panel have been located on the port side of the jet stairway as is the exterior emergency release door on 727s?

All I know is that it should take an FBI agent a grand total of 3 seconds to determine whether 305 had an emergency release panel with a red handle in it. If it didn't then the placard simply could not have come from 305. That said, the FBI didn't come to that conclusion. Why? Did it, perhaps, actually have and emergency release panel with a red handle even though it's not obvious to us?