Hood River, OR, August 14, 2013 -- According to a recent article in The Marine Corps Times (http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/article/20130807/NEWS04/308070008/Hawaii-become-huge-drone-base-Marine-Corps), the US Marines are considering a proposal to relocate about 270 Marines and 45 UAVs launched by Hood Tech’s new Mark 4 launcher. The RQ-21As would share a new facility with 12 copies of another UAV, moving from California to Kaneohe Bay in Hawaii. The final decision on the move may occur in 2014, following an environmental assessment “expected in October”. Hood Tech launchers have served the US around the globe, from the hot dusty deserts of Iraq and mountains of Afghanistan to shipboard rescues in international waters and interdictions of drug runners.

“From a launch support standpoint, the move to Hawaii presents ideal opportunities for training and new-hardware evaluations in maritime environments, where Hood Tech launchers tend to exceed expectations”, observed a Hood Tech representative. “We expect the Mark 4 launchers to perform in the Pacific theatre of operations as well as they always have for the US Marines and the US Navy. Hood Tech’s launchers began as part of a system to track tuna in the Pacific, so the potential Hawaii posting is somewhat a return to the launcher’s roots.”

When in 2002 Hood Tech began producing innovative UAV launchers and retrieval systems for small UAVs, those innovations enabled the elimination of runways for launch and retrieval. This freed aircraft for shipboard use, for deployment in irregular or disrupted landscapes, and for other difficult locations. Showing their ruggedness and reliability, Hood Tech launchers have initiated tens of thousands of flights under the extreme environments of combat in Iraq and Afghanistan and aboard ships in the oceans around the globe.

Dr. Andy von Flotow founded Hood Technology in Hood River, Oregon in 1992. In addition to the design and manufacture of launch systems, Hood Technology:

Provides zip test services for pre-flight safety verification of experimental aircraft and components.

Owns and maintains a silent wind tunnel for measuring UAV engine and prop noise in accordance with MILSTD1474.

Develops, tests, and manufactures stabilized imaging systems for a variety of UAVs

Monitors blade vibrations in industrial turbines and jet engines, a diagnostic method for predicting possible future failures.

The Hood Tech web site is: www.hoodtech.com

Contact:
Cory Roeseler
Hood Tech
135 Country Club Road, Bldg A
Hood River, OR 97031
541-387-2255
[email protected]
http://www.hoodtech.com