ALEXANDRIA, Va., June 10 -- United States Patent no. 12,291,359, issued on May 6, was assigned to Hood Technology Corp. (Hood River, Ore.).

"Rotorcraft-assisted system for launching and retrieving a fixed-wing aircraft into and from free flight" was invented by Andreas H. von Flotow (Hood River, Ore.) and Corydon C. Roeseler (Hood River, Ore.).

According to the abstract* released by the U.S. Patent & Trademark Office: "An aircraft launch apparatus including a bottom attachment assembly configured to receive a fixed wing aircraft, the bottom attachment assembly including a saddle movable between an open position and a locked position, the saddle including one or more front engagers and one or more rear engagers configured to engage the fix...