Władysław Józef Marian Turowicz (; 23 April 1908 – 8 January 1980), usually referred to as W. J. M. Turowicz, was a Polish-Pakistani aviator, military scientist and aeronautical engineer. He was one of forty five Polish officers and airmen who joined RPAF on contract in the early 1950s. After completion of his initial contract, Turowicz opted to stay on in Pakistan and continued to serve in the

Pakistan Air Force The Pakistan Air Force (PAF) (; ) is the aerial warfare branch of the Pakistan Armed Forces, tasked primarily with the aerial defence of Pakistan, with a secondary role of providing air support to the Pakistan Army and Pakistan Navy when re ...

. Turowicz was the administrator of Pakistan's

Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission The Space & Upper Atmosphere Research Commission, commonly referred to as SUPARCO, is the national space agency of Pakistan. The agency, originally established in 1961 as a committee in Karachi, became an independent commission in 1981. Its in ...

(SUPARCO) from 1967 to 1970. Turowicz made significant contributions to Pakistan's missile/rocket program as a chief

aeronautical engineer Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is s ...

. In Pakistan, he remains highly respected as a scientist and noted aeronautical engineer.

Early life and education

Turowicz was born to an aristocratic family in the village of Wadziejewsko in

Siberia Siberia ( ; , ) is an extensive geographical region comprising all of North Asia, from the Ural Mountains in the west to the Pacific Ocean in the east. It has formed a part of the sovereign territory of Russia and its predecessor states ...

(Russia) in 1908, where he graduated from high school. The Polish name of the village may suggest it was inhabited by

Poles Pole or poles may refer to: People *Poles (people), another term for Polish people, from the country of Poland * Pole (surname), including a list of people with the name * Pole (musician) (Stefan Betke, born 1967), German electronic music artist ...

who were exiled or imprisoned by the

Tsar Tsar (; also spelled ''czar'', ''tzar'', or ''csar''; ; ; sr-Cyrl-Latn, цар, car) is a title historically used by Slavic monarchs. The term is derived from the Latin word '' caesar'', which was intended to mean ''emperor'' in the Euro ...

, as it was unusual for Polish aristocrats to live in Siberia for non-political reasons. From an early age on, Turowicz was fascinated by aviation technology and had collected different models of aircraft. Due to this passion, he moved to

Warsaw Warsaw, officially the Capital City of Warsaw, is the capital and List of cities and towns in Poland, largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the Vistula, River Vistula in east-central Poland. Its population is officially estimated at ...

where he attended the most prestigious engineering institute, the

Warsaw University of Technology The Warsaw University of Technology () is one of the leading institutes of technology in Poland and one of the largest in Central Europe. It employs 2,453 teaching faculty, with 357 professors (including 145 titular professors). The student body ...

(WTU) in 1930, majoring in

aeronautical engineering Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is s ...

; upon graduation, he received his PhD with

honours Honour (Commonwealth English) or honor (American English; see spelling differences) is a quality of a person that is of both social teaching and personal ethos, that manifests itself as a code of conduct, and has various elements such as valo ...

in 1936. He completed an MSc in

astrodynamics Orbital mechanics or astrodynamics is the application of ballistics and celestial mechanics to rockets, satellites, and other spacecraft. The motion of these objects is usually calculated from Newton's laws of motion and the Newton's law of univ ...

in 1937 from the same institution. While at Warsaw University of Technology, Turowicz joined and became a pioneering member of a ''Aeroklub Polski'' (better known as Polish Aero Club) where he worked and studied with noted

Polish engineers Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Polish people, people from Poland or of Polish descent * Polish chicken * Polish brothers (Mark Polish and Michael Polish, born 1970), American twin ...

to the field of aerospace engineering. As a member of Polski Club, he had an opportunity to study and work with Ryszard Bartel, Jerzy Drzewiecki and Henry Millicer, amongst others. It was at the Aero Club that Turowicz met his future wife, Zofia Turowicz with whom he would have 4 children. He completed an MSc in

in 1937 from the same institution. He joined the

Polish Air Force The Polish Air Force () is the aerial warfare Military branch, branch of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as ''Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej'' (). In 2014 it consisted of roughly 26,000 military personnel an ...

as an

and fighter pilot, but later emigrated to United Kingdom where he joined the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the Air force, air and space force of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories and Crown Dependencies. It was formed towards the end of the World War I, First World War on 1 April 1918, on the merger of t ...

in 1939 as a reservist Polish pilot.

World War II and RAF career

Though initially joining the Polish Air Force, Turowicz enlisted as a Royal Air Force reservist during

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He was immediately sent to Great Britain where he flew the British-built Handley Page Halifax during the war. Later, he was transferred into the Royal Air Force Aeronautics division where he served as Technical Inspector, and was put in charge of aircraft electrical and system information, organising, testing, and evaluating aircraft. After World War II, Turowicz did not return to Communist Poland due to the negative official attitude towards those such as him, those who had served in the West (see also

Polish Armed Forces in the West The Polish Armed Forces in the West () refers to the Polish Armed Forces, Polish military formations formed to fight alongside the Allies of World War II, Western Allies against Nazi Germany and its Axis powers, allies during World War II. Poli ...

Career with the Pakistan Air Force

As the political situation in Poland grew worse, many Polish Air Force officers began to settle permanently to the United States, Australia, Norway and Canada. Turowicz and 45 of his colleagues opted to move to Pakistan in 1948 on a three-year contract. Turowicz set up technical institutes in Karachi. He taught at and revitalised the

Pakistan Air Force Academy The Pakistan Air Force Academy Asghar Khan (PAFAA) is an accredited four-year military academy which provides undergraduate education to officer candidates of the Pakistan Armed Forces, primarily the Pakistan Air Force (PAF).Shaheen Foundati ...

, where he worked as a chief scientist. He initially led the technical training in the airbase and a part of the Polish specialists in the technical section in Karachi. In 1952, Turowicz was promoted to the rank of

wing commander Wing commander (Wg Cdr or W/C) is a senior officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many countries that have historical British influence. Wing commander is immediately se ...

. In 1959, Turowicz was promoted in the rank of

group captain Group captain (Gp Capt or G/C) is a senior officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many Commonwealth of Nations, countries that have historical British influence. Group cap ...

. In 1960, he became an

air commodore Air commodore (Air Cdre or Air Cmde) is an air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is also used by the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence and it is sometimes ...

and an assistant chief of air staff, in charge of PAF's Maintenance Branch.

Pakistan's space program

In 1966, the Government of Pakistan transferred him to

, Pakistan's national space agency, where he worked as the SUPARCO administrator.

Family

Zofia, Turowicz's wife, and his two daughters joined him in Karachi in 1949, where a third daughter was born. Between 1950 and 1954, Zofia taught gliding to the Shaheen Air Cadets in Karachi and Rawalpindi. Two of his daughters married Pakistanis while the third daughter married a Bangladeshi. His widow, Zofia Turowicz, who died in 2012, was awarded the

Pride of Performance The Pride of Performance (), officially known as the Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Pakistan, Islamic Republic of Pakistan to recognize people with "notable achievements in the field of art, science, literature, sp ...

and Sitara-i-Imtiaz, and taught

applied mathematics Applied mathematics is the application of mathematics, mathematical methods by different fields such as physics, engineering, medicine, biology, finance, business, computer science, and Industrial sector, industry. Thus, applied mathematics is a ...

and

particle physics Particle physics or high-energy physics is the study of Elementary particle, fundamental particles and fundamental interaction, forces that constitute matter and radiation. The field also studies combinations of elementary particles up to the s ...

at the

Karachi University The University of Karachi (; informally Karachi University, KU, or UoK) is a public research university located in Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan. Established in June 1951 by an act of Parliament and as a successor to the University of Sindh (which is ...

. Turowicz's son is currently working at the SUPARCO as an

aerospace engineer Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is s ...

and chief scientist.Bravehart
Turowicz's grandson has completed a PhD in quantum physics from

Brown University Brown University is a Private university, private Ivy League research university in Providence, Rhode Island, United States. It is the List of colonial colleges, seventh-oldest institution of higher education in the US, founded in 1764 as the ' ...

and is currently running the AI statistical modelling division at

JP Morgan JPMorgan Chase & Co. (stylized as JPMorganChase) is an American multinational finance corporation headquartered in New York City and incorporated in Delaware. It is the largest bank in the United States, and the world's largest bank by mar ...

Death and legacy

Air. Cdre. Turowicz was involved in a car accident on 8 January 1980 along with his driver. He was quickly taken to the

military hospital A military hospital is a hospital owned or operated by a military. They are often reserved for the use of military personnel and their dependents, but in some countries are made available to civilians as well. They may or may not be located on a m ...

where he was pronounced dead. He was buried in the Christian Cemetery in Karachi with full military honours. Both Polish, including the Consul-General of Poland in Karachi Mr. Kazimierz Maurer, and Pakistani military and civilian personnel attended his funeral in Karachi. The Government of Pakistan issued a condolence letter to his family, stating that Turowicz was an outstanding Air Force officer.

Documentary

A documentary film on the life and scientific work of Air Cdre Władysław Turowicz was completed in 2008. It was directed by Anna T. Pietraszek, a Polish journalist and film-maker with an honorary Pakistani citizenship. The film shows how Air Cdre Turowicz and other Polish officers and technicians had contributed in building the PAF soon after independence.

Honours and recognition

In 2005, the PAF Museum, Karachi, placed a memorial plaque in the honour of Air. Cdre. Władysław Turowicz where both Polish and Pakistani civilian and military personnel attended. On this occasion the Consul General of the

Republic of Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It extends from the Baltic Sea in the north to the Sudetes and Carpathian Mountains in the south, bordered by Lithuania and Russia to the northeast, Belarus and Ukrai ...

Karachi Karachi is the capital city of the Administrative units of Pakistan, province of Sindh, Pakistan. It is the List of cities in Pakistan by population, largest city in Pakistan and 12th List of largest cities, largest in the world, with a popul ...

Ireneusz Makles profoundly thanked the PAF and especially

Air Chief Marshal Air chief marshal (Air Chf Mshl or ACM) is a high-ranking air officer rank used by some air forces, with origins from the Royal Air Force. The rank is used by air forces of many Commonwealth of Nations, countries that have historical British i ...

Rao Qamar Suleman and other officers for their efforts to make this memorial a reality. * Władysław Turowicz Monument (PAF Museum, Karachi). * Władysław Turowicz Space Complex (SUPARCO), Lahore Center.

Awards and decorations

* Sitara-e-Pakistan (1965) * Tamgha-i-Pakistan (1967) * Sitara-i-Khidmat (1967) * Sitara-e-Quaid-e-Azam (1971) *

Sitara-e-Imtiaz The Sitara-e-Imtiaz () also spelled as Sitara-i-Imtiaz, is the third-highest (in the order of "Imtiaz") honour and civilian award in the State of Pakistan. It recognizes individuals who have made an "especially meritorious contribution to the ...

, (Mil) (1972) * Abdus Salam Award in Aeronautical Engineering (1978) * ICTP Award in Space Physics (1979)

Foreign decorations

References

External links

*
Consulate General of Poland in Karachi IM
{{DEFAULTSORT:Turowicz, Wladyslaw Jozef Marian 1908 births 1980 deaths Polish military aviators Polish Army officers Polish World War II bomber pilots Polish aerospace engineers Pakistan Air Force air marshals Project-706 People from the Russian Empire of Polish descent Pakistani aviators 20th-century Pakistani engineers Warsaw University of Technology alumni Rocket scientists Polish scientists 20th-century Polish engineers People from Zabrze Polish military engineers Pakistani military engineers Pakistani aerospace engineers Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission people Polish emigrants to Pakistan Military personnel from Karachi Engineers from Karachi Road incident deaths in Pakistan Administrators of the Space and Upper Atmosphere Research Commission Recipients of the Sitara-e-Pakistan Naturalised citizens of Pakistan Pakistani Protestants Polish Protestants