LOWRANCE SOUTH AFRICA 25 | Page 14

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.