THE PASSING OF
MR LOWRANCE
The founder of Lowrance Electronics, Darrell
Lowrance, sadly died (aged 80) on Saturday, March
16th, after suffering a stroke.
Since the 60’s, thousands of anglers around the globe
have benefitted from his revolutionary inventions in
fish finding and navigation – a trend which continues
today, through parent company Navico. He was,
without question, a giant and a leader in the world of
fishing - which mourns his passing!
Darrell served as President and CEO of Lowrance Electronics from 1964 to 2006
and was responsible for many breakthroughs in marine electronics. As a pilot and
being an amazing innovator, his idea for inventing fishfinders came while flying
one clear day. After spotting schools of fish in the ocean, he wondered whether
sonar (used by submarines) could be used to find them – and the rest is history!
In addition to the first recreational sonar product for anglers –
the Fish-Lo-K-Tor (also known as the “Little Green Box”) – which
revolutionized fishing - he led the development of the first graph
recorder, the first integrated sonar/GPS unit, and many others.
He was President of the American Fishing Tackle Manufacturer’s
Association (AFTMA) from 1983-1984.