NORJAK · Flight 305 · The parachute left behind
Two Cards, One Chute
Reconciling the Cooper Packing Cards
Card A · 26′Pioneer Parachute Co. · 26′ ripstop conical · survives with the chute (photographed 2011)
Card B · 24′Steinthal Mfg. Co. · 24′ rip stop · 60-9707 · 7/60 · known only from FBI paperwork
Two Cards, One Chute
Reconciling the Cooper Packing Cards
The leftover back parachute from Flight 305 carried two packing cards, both signed by rigger Earl Cossey on May 21, 1971. What the FBI recorded, what the 2011 inspection shows, and how the second card got there.
Key findings
- Two cards, both from 5/21/71. One for a 26′ Pioneer canopy, one for a 24′ Steinthal canopy, both signed by Cossey.
- Both were already there in Reno. The night-of reports draw details from both cards.
- The FBI read the form one line off. Correcting it explains "type 226, SN 9/57"; nothing on the rig matches Card B.