Seattle Airport Weather

Review: Non-fiction: Skyjack: The Hunt For DB Cooper by Geoffrey Gray

On the afternoon of November 24, 1971, a man in his mid-40s, between 5ft 10in and 6ft, wearing a light raincoat over a dark suit and carrying an attaché case, bought a one-way ticket at the Northwest Orient Airline counter at Portland International Airport in Oregon.

The flight to Seattle was a short one, just half an hour. He paid cash -- $18.52 plus tax, total $20. The plane was only a third full.

He took his seat at the back, lit a cigarette and ordered a bourbon and soda.

The plane took off at 2.50pm local time. He passed the stewardess a note. Florence Schaffner, 23 years old and good looking, was no stranger to messages from male passengers. She slipped it into a purse. "Miss," said the man, "you'd better look at that note. I have a bomb."

She retrieved the note and opened it: "I have a bomb in my briefcase. I want you to sit beside me."

Schaffner sat down. She asked him to open his briefcase. Inside, as she tells it, there were six red cylinders, a tangle of wires and a battery.

It was the start of a story that has remained a mystery from that day to this. The only unsolved plane hijack in American history, it is also the only one that belongs not in the category of political terrorism but of criminal derring-do. For what happened next almost defies belief, and the man who did it has never been found, dead or alive, nor has he ever been identified.

There have been many theories, many would-be relatives and some pieces of what may be evidence. The FBI reinvestigates from time to time and it comes as no surprise that last week, four decades on, another claimant -- a maybe-niece -- has made her way on to the American news agenda, clutching a photograph of the man she claims was the hijacker.

"I want $200,000 by 5pm. In cash. Put in a knapsack. I want two back parachutes and two front parachutes," the passenger told the stewardess. "When we land, I want a fuel truck ready to refuel. No funny stuff or I'll do the job." She took the message to the captain, then resumed her seat.

The man was polite. "He paid for his drink and told me to keep the change," Schaffner told Geoffrey Gray, author of Skyjack: The Hunt for D B Cooper, a new book about the mystery. She also thought he may have been a local, because he stared out of the window and said: "Looks like Tacoma down there."

"He wasn't nervous," another air hostess told investigators later. "He seemed rather nice. He was never cruel or nasty. He was thoughtful and calm all the time.

AccuWeather.com - Weather News | Seattle, Portland May Get Their ...

Some changes may be on the way for the West, especially for folks along the Pacific Coast that have not yet hit 90 degrees so far this summer.

A very persistent dip in the jet stream along the Pacific Coast has kept many areas under the influence of natural air conditioning.

The dip in the jet is associated with cool air aloft. When it is cool aloft, it is more difficult for warmth to build at the surface.

The same pattern also directs a flow of air in from the Pacific or prevents warm air from flowing westward from the heart of the continent. In this pattern, clouds tend to hang on for hours, if not days on end.

According to Long Range Expert Joe Lundberg, "During the week of Aug. 21 to 27, the pattern may flip enough, long enough to allow the warmest weather of the year so far."

There is some indication that warm air will build aloft, while the flow of air from the Pacific will ease. There may even be a weak offshore flow for a few days."

Some warmth will poke into the West this weekend. However, that trend will likely be followed by another setback next week.

The warmest it has been thus far this season in Seattle is 84 degrees. Meanwhile, in Portland, Ore., the highest temperatures have reached is 87 degrees. Both cities reached this mark way back on July 6.

During the fourth week in August, both cities not only have a shot at multiple days with highs in the 80s, but also the chance of reaching the 90-degree mark for the first time this summer.

The pattern change would bring more sunshine and much less cloud cover to coastal areas as well.

Many areas in California would also feel substantial warmth. The temperature at Los Angeles International Airport has not yet hit 90 degrees this year.

San Francisco did manage to hit 90 this summer, but only once. The high was 90 on June 20.

It's interesting that some MLB players would rather deal with the Texas heat as opposed to the Bay region chill .

Western Weather Expert Ken Clark has some reservations about the pattern change portrayed on some of the long-range computer models.

"The cool pattern has been very persistent this summer. Even if the pattern does flip for a few days, there's no guarantee it will last long and certainly not through the end of summer," Clark said.

"The West Coast is not likely to have an extended heat wave," Clark added.

People in the area, including visiting MLB pitchers, will want to have their jackets handy, as even if the temperature returns to normal for a few days, it means cool evenings, nights and mornings.

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