According to a posting of an announcement by the US Navy, accompanied by photographs (http://www.navair.navy.mil/index.cfm?fuseaction=home.NAVAIRNewsStory&id=...), the new small tactical unmanned air system (STUAS) RQ-21A completed its first ship-based flight on February 10, 2013. The final photo in the posting features Hood Tech’s Mark 4 launcher in its first run at sea, on the LPD-class USS Mesa Verde in the Gulf of Mexico. “We’re delighted to be supporting the RQ-21A and through it the US Navy”, said Cory Roeseler, Chief Engineer for Hood Tech Corp. Mechanical, Inc. “We believe the Navy will be well-served by the RQ-21A, and we have increased the capabilities of our launcher line to improve the capacity, power, and speed of launches.”
When in 2002 Hood Tech began producing UAV launchers and innovative 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.
