Janusz Zurakowski
Encyclopedia
Janusz Żurakowski was a renowned Polish
fighter
and test pilot, who, at various times, lived and worked in Poland, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
parents in 1909 in Ryzawka, which had been a city of the Russian Empire since 1864 when the Russians abolished the Congress Kingdom of Poland
. In 1921, following the Polish-Soviet War
, the Treaty of Riga
established the frontier between Soviet Russia and the Second Polish Republic
. The new border placed Ryzawka in Soviet territory and the Żurakowski family left their home and escaped into the newly established Polish Republic.
Żurakowski was educated in Lublin
and while at high school, he learned to fly glider
s. In 1934, Żurakowski joined the Polish Air Force
and entered the Polish Air Force Officers' School. After learning to fly powered aircraft in 1935, and graduating as a Sub-Lieutenant, he went on to serve as a fighter pilot posted to 161 Fighter Squadron in Lwów, and later, in 1939, as a flying instructor at Deblin.
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trainer against a flight of seven German Dornier 17s attacking Deblin on 2 September. He managed to damage a Do 17 but was forced to break off combat when his guns jammed.
Following the defeat of Poland, Żurakowski made his way to England via Romania and France. Like many of his compatriots, he was smuggled out of the war zone with false documents and a new identity as a forester. Thousands of the Polish Air Force pilots who had made their way to France fought against Luftwaffe forces in the Battle of France
. Żurakowski was originally posted to a fighter unit in France before he was selected to train as a bomber pilot in England. Once he arrived in England, the RAF changed its mind and sent him and the first group of Poles to fighter squadrons which were rapidly being deployed in anticipation of an attack on Britain in 1940.
Żurakowski was first posted as a Pilot Officer
to 152 Squadron before joining No 234 Squadron
initially stationed at RAF St Eval
, Cornwall
, a town named after the patron saint of flight testing. The squadron was moved forward to RAF Middle Wallop on 13 August 1940. He flew the Spitfire Mk. 1
against the Luftwaffe
shooting down a Messerschmitt
Bf-110 over the Isle of Wight
on 15 August 1940. After being shot down nine days later, he returned to duty, shooting down two Bf-109Es on the 12th and 13th day after that. Near the conclusion of the Battle of Britain, he scored a "probable" over a Bf-110C on 29 September 1940. Following the decimation of 234 Squadron and its transfer to the north, Żurakowski asked for a transfer to No. 609 Squadron RAF
, a Spitfire unit still in the front lines. From there, he was reposted as a flight instructor to a succession of Flight Training Units where he passed on his knowledge of combat flying to a new group of fighter pilots.
In 1942, now Flying Officer
Żurakowski flew again with his countrymen on Spitfire IIs in No 315 Squadron
rising to the post of Squadron Leader
of No 316 Polish Fighter Squadron
and Deputy Wing
leader of Polish No 1 Fighter Wing stationed at RAF Northolt
, often escorting USAAF
bombers on daylight bombing raids. Żurakowski scored a probable over a Me-109G on 17 May 1943 while acting as the Wing Gunnery Officer. He was awarded the Virtuti Militari
, the Polish equivalent of the Victoria Cross
in 1943. Other awards included the Polish Cross of Valor (Krzyż Walecznych) and Bar (1941) and Second Bar (1943).
-imposed communist government exiled all of the Polish fighter pilots who had flown with the RAF as part of a ploy to downplay Polish patriotism
. As a result, S/L Żurakowski, among many other Polish war heroes, chose to stay in Britain. In 1944, he was posted to the Empire Test Pilots' School
, graduating from No. 2 Course on 5 January 1945. From 1945 to 1947 Żurakowski worked as a test pilot with "C" Squadron of the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment
(A&AEE) at RAF Boscombe Down, testing naval aircraft for the Air Ministry
. Never having landed an aircraft on a carrier before, he practised landing on a deck painted on a runway at Naval Air Station East Haven
. Following a brief training period, he proceeded to land the Supermarine Seafire
, a navalised Spitfire, on the deck of HMS Ravager
without incident.
While still at Boscombe Down
, Żurakowski also flew, among over 30 different types, the Vampire
, the de Havilland Hornet
, and the Gloster Meteor
never letting pass, "an opportunity to give the staff a display that included single engine aerobatics." Acknowledged as one of the best aerobatic pilots in the UK, he gave a spectacular display at the Farnborough Airshow in June 1946, with the Martin-Baker MB 5, a piston-engined fighter designed too late to enter production.
Retiring from the RAF as Squadron Leader in 1947, Żurakowski was employed as Chief Experimental Test Pilot for Gloster Aircraft Company under Chief Test Pilot Bill Waterton
, and when Waterton was away in Canada on assignment, assumed the role of Acting Chief Test Pilot. "Zura" as he came to be known, tested the many experimental versions of the Gloster Meteor
, Javelin
, and Gloster E.1/44
fighters. He set an international speed record: London-Copenhagen-London, 4–5 April 1950. The attempt was organised by Gloster to sell the Meteor IV to the Danish Air Force and succeeeded.
At the 1951 Farnborough Airshow, Żurakowski demonstrated a new aerobatics manoeuvre, the "Zurabatic Cartwheel", in which he suspended the Gloster Meteor G-7-1 prototype he was flying, in a vertical cartwheel. "This jet manoeuvre was the first new aerobatic in 20 years." The cartwheel used the dangerously asymmetric behaviour the Meteor had with one engine throttled back. The manoeuvre started with a vertical climb to 4,000 ft by which point the aircraft had slowed to only 80 mph. Cutting the power of one engine caused the Meteor to pivot. When the nose was pointing downwards, the second engine was throttled back and the aircraft continued to rotate through a further 360 degrees on momentum alone having lost nearly all vertical velocity. Carrying out the cartwheel and recovering from it with entering an inverted spin (which the Meteor could not be brought out of) required great skill.
In April 1952, Żurakowski and his family left for Canada
where he became a test pilot for A.V. Roe Canada
, concentrating on experimental testing. He broke the sound barrier
on 18 December 1952, diving the CF-100
fighter, the first straight-winged jet aircraft to achieve this feat. While testing an experimental rocket pack on 23 August 1954, Zura survived an explosion that killed his observer, John Hiebert.
During the Avro Canada years, Zura continued to fly as an aerobatic display pilot, with spectacular results, especially at the 1955 Farnborough Airshow where he displayed the CF-100 in a "falling-leaf". He was acclaimed again as the "Great Zura" by many aviation and industry observers. In 1958, he was chosen as the chief development test pilot
of the new CF-105 Avro Arrow program. On 25 March 1958, with Janusz at the controls, Arrow RL 25201 took off from Malton, Ontario
for its first flight. The flight lasted 35 minutes and was problem free. Jan continued in the flight test program. He flew Arrows RL 201, 202, and 203, over a total of 21 flights, 23.75 hours, reaching speeds of Mach 1.89 and an altitude of 50,000 feet.
After flying Arrow 203 on 26 September 1958, Zurakowski decided to give up test flying for good, fulfilling a promise he had made to his wife to stop experimental flying once he reached the age of 40, although he had already exceeded that age.
government had precipitously cancelled the Avro Arrow program and its Orenda Iroquois engine. The five flying examples and the newly constructed RL-206 (slated for a run at World Air Speed and Altitude records) along with all the assorted factory jigs and tools were broken up. Only the nose of Arrow 206 and sections of other Arrows now exist, on display at the Canada Aviation Museum
in Ottawa.
After deciding to leave the aviation world altogether, Żurakowski and his family moved to Barry's Bay, Ontario
to build Kartuzy Lodge, a small tourist lodge and resort which he and his family operated for over 40 years. During this period, he resorted to his engineering background when he "tinkered" with a number of sailboat, catamaran, and ice-boats, of his own design and construction. Two of his hydrofoil boats are still used by Kartuzy Lodge renters.
's release of a commemorative coin, the Avro Canada CF-100 Canuck which featured an insert of Janusz Żurakowski. In 1997, he was inducted into the Western Canada Aviation Museum "Pioneers of Canadian Aviation" annals, as well as being profiled in the following year in the documentary film, "Straight Arrow". On 23 July 1999, CFB Cold Lake (Alberta) Aerospace Engineering Test Establishment named its new facility, the "Żurakowski Building", and in September 2000, he became an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Experimental Test pilots, joining the ranks of Charles Lindbergh
, Neil Armstrong
, and Igor Sikorsky
, among numerous other luminaries.
He received the Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland in 1999.
His adopted hometown built Żurakowski Park in 2003, recognizing his contributions to the community, as well as the world. Following a lingering battle with leukemia, Żurakowski died at Kartuzy Lodge on 9 February 2004.
Two imposing statues, of Janusz Żurakowski and his beloved Avro Arrow, dominate the arrow-shaped Żurakowski Park (an elongated triangle evocative of the Avro Arrow's profile) at the crossroads of two main streets in Barry's Bay, Ontario. A future museum and visitor's commemorative centre consisting of a gazebo and display area will be located at Żurakowski Park.
The former Gloster Aircraft company airfield at Hucclecote has become a residential division in Gloucester
, UK and features Zura Avenue.
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
fighter
Fighter aircraft
A fighter aircraft is a military aircraft designed primarily for air-to-air combat with other aircraft, as opposed to a bomber, which is designed primarily to attack ground targets...
and test pilot, who, at various times, lived and worked in Poland, the United Kingdom, and Canada.
Early life
Żurakowski was born to PolishPoland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
parents in 1909 in Ryzawka, which had been a city of the Russian Empire since 1864 when the Russians abolished the Congress Kingdom of Poland
Congress Poland
The Kingdom of Poland , informally known as Congress Poland , created in 1815 by the Congress of Vienna, was a personal union of the Russian parcel of Poland with the Russian Empire...
. In 1921, following the Polish-Soviet War
Polish-Soviet War
The Polish–Soviet War was an armed conflict between Soviet Russia and Soviet Ukraine and the Second Polish Republic and the Ukrainian People's Republic—four states in post–World War I Europe...
, the Treaty of Riga
Peace of Riga
The Peace of Riga, also known as the Treaty of Riga; was signed in Riga on 18 March 1921, between Poland, Soviet Russia and Soviet Ukraine. The treaty ended the Polish-Soviet War....
established the frontier between Soviet Russia and the Second Polish Republic
Second Polish Republic
The Second Polish Republic, Second Commonwealth of Poland or interwar Poland refers to Poland between the two world wars; a period in Polish history in which Poland was restored as an independent state. Officially known as the Republic of Poland or the Commonwealth of Poland , the Polish state was...
. The new border placed Ryzawka in Soviet territory and the Żurakowski family left their home and escaped into the newly established Polish Republic.
Żurakowski was educated in Lublin
Lublin
Lublin is the ninth largest city in Poland. It is the capital of Lublin Voivodeship with a population of 350,392 . Lublin is also the largest Polish city east of the Vistula river...
and while at high school, he learned to fly glider
Glider aircraft
Glider aircraft are heavier-than-air craft that are supported in flight by the dynamic reaction of the air against their lifting surfaces, and whose free flight does not depend on an engine. Mostly these types of aircraft are intended for routine operation without engines, though engine failure can...
s. In 1934, Żurakowski joined the Polish Air Force
Polish Air Force
The Polish Air Force is the military Air Force wing of the Polish Armed Forces. Until July 2004 it was officially known as Wojska Lotnicze i Obrony Powietrznej...
and entered the Polish Air Force Officers' School. After learning to fly powered aircraft in 1935, and graduating as a Sub-Lieutenant, he went on to serve as a fighter pilot posted to 161 Fighter Squadron in Lwów, and later, in 1939, as a flying instructor at Deblin.
Second World War
In September 1939, "Black September", Żurakowski had his combat debut in an outmoded PZL P.7PZL P.7
-References:NotesBibliography* Cynk, Jerzy B. History of the Polish Air Force 1918-1968. Reading, Berkshire, UK: Osprey Publishing Ltd., 1972.* Cynk, Jerzy B. Polish Aircraft, 1893-1939. London: Putnam & Company Ltd., 1971. ISBN 0-370-00085-4....
trainer against a flight of seven German Dornier 17s attacking Deblin on 2 September. He managed to damage a Do 17 but was forced to break off combat when his guns jammed.
Following the defeat of Poland, Żurakowski made his way to England via Romania and France. Like many of his compatriots, he was smuggled out of the war zone with false documents and a new identity as a forester. Thousands of the Polish Air Force pilots who had made their way to France fought against Luftwaffe forces in the Battle of France
Battle of France
In the Second World War, the Battle of France was the German invasion of France and the Low Countries, beginning on 10 May 1940, which ended the Phoney War. The battle consisted of two main operations. In the first, Fall Gelb , German armoured units pushed through the Ardennes, to cut off and...
. Żurakowski was originally posted to a fighter unit in France before he was selected to train as a bomber pilot in England. Once he arrived in England, the RAF changed its mind and sent him and the first group of Poles to fighter squadrons which were rapidly being deployed in anticipation of an attack on Britain in 1940.
Żurakowski was first posted as a Pilot Officer
Pilot Officer
Pilot officer is the lowest commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many other Commonwealth countries. It ranks immediately below flying officer...
to 152 Squadron before joining No 234 Squadron
No. 234 Squadron RAF
No. 234 Squadron RAF had a long career within the RAF, being operational on flying boats in World War I and on fighter aircraft in World War II. After the war it remained a fighter unit till 1957. In its last incarnation the squadron was in turn Operational Training Unit , Tactical Weapon Unit and...
initially stationed at RAF St Eval
RAF St Eval
RAF St Eval was a strategic airbase for the RAF Coastal Command in the Second World War . St Eval's primary role was to provided anti-submarine and anti-shipping patrols off the south west coast of England...
, Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
, a town named after the patron saint of flight testing. The squadron was moved forward to RAF Middle Wallop on 13 August 1940. He flew the Spitfire Mk. 1
Supermarine Spitfire
The Supermarine Spitfire is a British single-seat fighter aircraft that was used by the Royal Air Force and many other Allied countries throughout the Second World War. The Spitfire continued to be used as a front line fighter and in secondary roles into the 1950s...
against the Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
shooting down a Messerschmitt
Messerschmitt
Messerschmitt AG was a famous German aircraft manufacturing corporation named for its chief designer, Willy Messerschmitt, and known primarily for its World War II fighter aircraft, notably the Bf 109 and Me 262...
Bf-110 over the Isle of Wight
Isle of Wight
The Isle of Wight is a county and the largest island of England, located in the English Channel, on average about 2–4 miles off the south coast of the county of Hampshire, separated from the mainland by a strait called the Solent...
on 15 August 1940. After being shot down nine days later, he returned to duty, shooting down two Bf-109Es on the 12th and 13th day after that. Near the conclusion of the Battle of Britain, he scored a "probable" over a Bf-110C on 29 September 1940. Following the decimation of 234 Squadron and its transfer to the north, Żurakowski asked for a transfer to No. 609 Squadron RAF
No. 609 Squadron RAF
No. 609 Squadron of the Royal Auxiliary Air Force, originally formed as a bomber squadron and in World War II active as fighter squadron, nowadays provides personnel to augment and support the operations of the Royal Air Force. The squadron is no longer a flying Squadron, but instead has the role...
, a Spitfire unit still in the front lines. From there, he was reposted as a flight instructor to a succession of Flight Training Units where he passed on his knowledge of combat flying to a new group of fighter pilots.
Flying Officer
Flying officer is a junior commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence...
Żurakowski flew again with his countrymen on Spitfire IIs in No 315 Squadron
No. 315 Polish Fighter Squadron
No 315 Polish Fighter Squadron was a Polish fighter squadron formed in Great Britain as part of an agreement between the Polish Government in Exile and the United Kingdom in 1941. It was one of several Polish fighter squadrons fighting alongside the Royal Air Force during the World War II...
rising to the post of Squadron Leader
Squadron Leader
Squadron Leader is a commissioned rank in the Royal Air Force and the air forces of many countries which have historical British influence. It is also sometimes used as the English translation of an equivalent rank in countries which have a non-English air force-specific rank structure. In these...
of No 316 Polish Fighter Squadron
No. 316 Polish Fighter Squadron
No. 316 "City of Warsaw" Polish Fighter Squadron was a Polish fighter squadron formed in Great Britain as part of an agreement between the Polish Government in Exile and the United Kingdom in 1941...
and Deputy Wing
Wing (air force unit)
Wing is a term used by different military aviation forces for a unit of command. The terms wing, group or Staffel are used for different-sized units from one country or service to another....
leader of Polish No 1 Fighter Wing stationed at RAF Northolt
RAF Northolt
RAF Northolt is a Royal Air Force station situated in South Ruislip, east by northeast of Uxbridge in the London Borough of Hillingdon, West London. Approximately north of London Heathrow Airport, the station also handles a large number of private civil flights...
, often escorting USAAF
United States Army Air Forces
The United States Army Air Forces was the military aviation arm of the United States of America during and immediately after World War II, and the direct predecessor of the United States Air Force....
bombers on daylight bombing raids. Żurakowski scored a probable over a Me-109G on 17 May 1943 while acting as the Wing Gunnery Officer. He was awarded the Virtuti Militari
Virtuti Militari
The Order Wojenny Virtuti Militari is Poland's highest military decoration for heroism and courage in the face of the enemy at war...
, the Polish equivalent of the Victoria Cross
Victoria Cross
The Victoria Cross is the highest military decoration awarded for valour "in the face of the enemy" to members of the armed forces of various Commonwealth countries, and previous British Empire territories....
in 1943. Other awards included the Polish Cross of Valor (Krzyż Walecznych) and Bar (1941) and Second Bar (1943).
Postwar
After the war, Poland's SovietSoviet Union
The Soviet Union , officially the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics , was a constitutionally socialist state that existed in Eurasia between 1922 and 1991....
-imposed communist government exiled all of the Polish fighter pilots who had flown with the RAF as part of a ploy to downplay Polish patriotism
Patriotism
Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
. As a result, S/L Żurakowski, among many other Polish war heroes, chose to stay in Britain. In 1944, he was posted to the Empire Test Pilots' School
Empire Test Pilots' School
The Empire Test Pilots' School is a British training school for test pilots and flight test engineers of fixed-wing and rotary-wing aircraft at MoD Boscombe Down in Wiltshire, England. It was established in 1943, the first of its type...
, graduating from No. 2 Course on 5 January 1945. From 1945 to 1947 Żurakowski worked as a test pilot with "C" Squadron of the Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment
Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment
The Aeroplane and Armament Experimental Establishment was a research facility for British military aviation from 1918 to 1992.-History:...
(A&AEE) at RAF Boscombe Down, testing naval aircraft for the Air Ministry
Air Ministry
The Air Ministry was a department of the British Government with the responsibility of managing the affairs of the Royal Air Force, that existed from 1918 to 1964...
. Never having landed an aircraft on a carrier before, he practised landing on a deck painted on a runway at Naval Air Station East Haven
East Haven
East Haven may refer to:*East Haven, Connecticut, USA*East Haven, Vermont, USA*East Haven, Angus, Scotland*"Easthaven", another name for the card game Klondike...
. Following a brief training period, he proceeded to land the Supermarine Seafire
Supermarine Seafire
The Supermarine Seafire was a naval version of the Supermarine Spitfire specially adapted for operation from aircraft carriers. The name Seafire was arrived at by collapsing the longer name Sea Spitfire.-Origins of the Seafire:...
, a navalised Spitfire, on the deck of HMS Ravager
HMS Ravager (D70)
HMS Ravager was an Ruler class escort carrier escort carrier built in the United States and operated by the Royal Navy during World War II....
without incident.
MoD Boscombe Down
MoD Boscombe Down is an aircraft testing site located at Idmiston, south of Amesbury, in Wiltshire, England. It is run and managed by QinetiQ, the company created as part of the breakup of the Defence Evaluation and Research Agency in 2001 by the UK Ministry of Defence...
, Żurakowski also flew, among over 30 different types, the Vampire
De Havilland Vampire
The de Havilland DH.100 Vampire was a British jet-engine fighter commissioned by the Royal Air Force during the Second World War. Following the Gloster Meteor, it was the second jet fighter to enter service with the RAF. Although it arrived too late to see combat during the war, the Vampire served...
, the de Havilland Hornet
De Havilland Hornet
The de Havilland DH.103 Hornet was a piston engine fighter that further exploited the wooden construction techniques pioneered by de Havilland's classic Mosquito. Entering service at the end of the Second World War, the Hornet equipped postwar RAF Fighter Command day fighter units in the UK and was...
, and the Gloster Meteor
Gloster Meteor
The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies' first operational jet. It first flew in 1943 and commenced operations on 27 July 1944 with 616 Squadron of the Royal Air Force...
never letting pass, "an opportunity to give the staff a display that included single engine aerobatics." Acknowledged as one of the best aerobatic pilots in the UK, he gave a spectacular display at the Farnborough Airshow in June 1946, with the Martin-Baker MB 5, a piston-engined fighter designed too late to enter production.
Retiring from the RAF as Squadron Leader in 1947, Żurakowski was employed as Chief Experimental Test Pilot for Gloster Aircraft Company under Chief Test Pilot Bill Waterton
Bill Waterton
Squadron Leader Bill Waterton GM AFC* was a Canadian test pilot and correspondent for the Daily Express. He was awarded the George Medal for saving the flight data when he landed at great risk the prototype Gloster Javelin after it lost its controls during a test flight.-Early years:Born in...
, and when Waterton was away in Canada on assignment, assumed the role of Acting Chief Test Pilot. "Zura" as he came to be known, tested the many experimental versions of the Gloster Meteor
Gloster Meteor
The Gloster Meteor was the first British jet fighter and the Allies' first operational jet. It first flew in 1943 and commenced operations on 27 July 1944 with 616 Squadron of the Royal Air Force...
, Javelin
Gloster Javelin
The Gloster Javelin was an "all-weather" interceptor aircraft that served with Britain's Royal Air Force in the late 1950s and most of the 1960s...
, and Gloster E.1/44
Gloster E.1/44
|-See also:-References:NotesBibliography* Ashley, Glenn. Meteor in Action. Carrollton, Texas: Squadron/Signal Publications Inc., 1995. ISBN 0-89747-332-9.* Bowyer, Chaz. Gloster Meteor. London: Ian Allan Ltd., 1985. ISBN 0-7110-1477-9....
fighters. He set an international speed record: London-Copenhagen-London, 4–5 April 1950. The attempt was organised by Gloster to sell the Meteor IV to the Danish Air Force and succeeeded.
At the 1951 Farnborough Airshow, Żurakowski demonstrated a new aerobatics manoeuvre, the "Zurabatic Cartwheel", in which he suspended the Gloster Meteor G-7-1 prototype he was flying, in a vertical cartwheel. "This jet manoeuvre was the first new aerobatic in 20 years." The cartwheel used the dangerously asymmetric behaviour the Meteor had with one engine throttled back. The manoeuvre started with a vertical climb to 4,000 ft by which point the aircraft had slowed to only 80 mph. Cutting the power of one engine caused the Meteor to pivot. When the nose was pointing downwards, the second engine was throttled back and the aircraft continued to rotate through a further 360 degrees on momentum alone having lost nearly all vertical velocity. Carrying out the cartwheel and recovering from it with entering an inverted spin (which the Meteor could not be brought out of) required great skill.
In April 1952, Żurakowski and his family left for Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
where he became a test pilot for A.V. Roe Canada
Avro Canada
Commonly known as Avro Canada, this company started in 1945 as an aircraft plant and became within thirteen years the third-largest company in Canada, one of the largest 100 companies in the world, and directly employing over 50,000...
, concentrating on experimental testing. He broke the sound barrier
Sound barrier
The sound barrier, in aerodynamics, is the point at which an aircraft moves from transonic to supersonic speed. The term, which occasionally has other meanings, came into use during World War II, when a number of aircraft started to encounter the effects of compressibility, a collection of several...
on 18 December 1952, diving the CF-100
Avro CF-100
The Avro Canada CF-100 Canuck was a Canadian jet interceptor/fighter serving during the Cold War both in NATO bases in Europe and as part of NORAD. The CF-100 was the only Canadian-designed fighter to enter mass production, serving primarily with the RCAF/CAF and in small numbers in Belgium...
fighter, the first straight-winged jet aircraft to achieve this feat. While testing an experimental rocket pack on 23 August 1954, Zura survived an explosion that killed his observer, John Hiebert.
Test pilot
A test pilot is an aviator who flies new and modified aircraft in specific maneuvers, known as flight test techniques or FTTs, allowing the results to be measured and the design to be evaluated....
of the new CF-105 Avro Arrow program. On 25 March 1958, with Janusz at the controls, Arrow RL 25201 took off from Malton, Ontario
Malton, Ontario
Malton is a neighbourhood in the northeastern part of the city of Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, located to the northwest of Toronto. The neighbourhood has a population of approximately 36,400 as of 2002....
for its first flight. The flight lasted 35 minutes and was problem free. Jan continued in the flight test program. He flew Arrows RL 201, 202, and 203, over a total of 21 flights, 23.75 hours, reaching speeds of Mach 1.89 and an altitude of 50,000 feet.
After flying Arrow 203 on 26 September 1958, Zurakowski decided to give up test flying for good, fulfilling a promise he had made to his wife to stop experimental flying once he reached the age of 40, although he had already exceeded that age.
Later life
Żurakowski retired from active test flying in November 1958 but continued with the Avro Aircraft company as an engineer in the Flight Test Office. On 20 February 1959, the infamous "Black Friday", Żurakowski, along with the approximately 15,000 employees of Avro and Orenda plants learned that the DiefenbakerDiefenbaker
John Diefenbaker was the 13th Prime Minister of Canada.Diefenbaker may also refer to:* Diefenbaker , an animal character in Due South* Lake Diefenbaker, a Canadian lake-See also:...
government had precipitously cancelled the Avro Arrow program and its Orenda Iroquois engine. The five flying examples and the newly constructed RL-206 (slated for a run at World Air Speed and Altitude records) along with all the assorted factory jigs and tools were broken up. Only the nose of Arrow 206 and sections of other Arrows now exist, on display at the Canada Aviation Museum
Canada Aviation Museum
The Canada Aviation and Space Museum is Canada's national aviation history museum. The museum is located in Ottawa, Ontario, Canada, at the Ottawa/Rockcliffe Airport...
in Ottawa.
After deciding to leave the aviation world altogether, Żurakowski and his family moved to Barry's Bay, Ontario
Barry's Bay, Ontario
Barry's Bay is a community in the township of Madawaska Valley, Ontario, Canada, located two hours west of Ottawa on the shores of Kamaniskeg Lake, with a population of approximately 1,300 people...
to build Kartuzy Lodge, a small tourist lodge and resort which he and his family operated for over 40 years. During this period, he resorted to his engineering background when he "tinkered" with a number of sailboat, catamaran, and ice-boats, of his own design and construction. Two of his hydrofoil boats are still used by Kartuzy Lodge renters.
Honours
In recognition of his contributions to Canadian aviation, Żurakowski was inducted into Canada's Aviation Hall of Fame in 1973. He was further honoured in 1996 by the Royal Canadian MintRoyal Canadian Mint
The Royal Canadian Mint produces all of Canada's circulation coins, and manufactures circulation coins on behalf of other nations. The Mint also designs and manufactures: precious and base metal collector coins; gold, silver, palladium, and platinum bullion coins; medals, as well as medallions and...
's release of a commemorative coin, the Avro Canada CF-100 Canuck which featured an insert of Janusz Żurakowski. In 1997, he was inducted into the Western Canada Aviation Museum "Pioneers of Canadian Aviation" annals, as well as being profiled in the following year in the documentary film, "Straight Arrow". On 23 July 1999, CFB Cold Lake (Alberta) Aerospace Engineering Test Establishment named its new facility, the "Żurakowski Building", and in September 2000, he became an Honorary Fellow of the Society of Experimental Test pilots, joining the ranks of Charles Lindbergh
Charles Lindbergh
Charles Augustus Lindbergh was an American aviator, author, inventor, explorer, and social activist.Lindbergh, a 25-year-old U.S...
, Neil Armstrong
Neil Armstrong
Neil Alden Armstrong is an American former astronaut, test pilot, aerospace engineer, university professor, United States Naval Aviator, and the first person to set foot upon the Moon....
, and Igor Sikorsky
Igor Sikorsky
Igor Sikorsky , born Igor Ivanovich Sikorsky was a Russian American pioneer of aviation in both helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft...
, among numerous other luminaries.
He received the Commander's Cross of the Order of Merit of the Republic of Poland in 1999.
His adopted hometown built Żurakowski Park in 2003, recognizing his contributions to the community, as well as the world. Following a lingering battle with leukemia, Żurakowski died at Kartuzy Lodge on 9 February 2004.
Two imposing statues, of Janusz Żurakowski and his beloved Avro Arrow, dominate the arrow-shaped Żurakowski Park (an elongated triangle evocative of the Avro Arrow's profile) at the crossroads of two main streets in Barry's Bay, Ontario. A future museum and visitor's commemorative centre consisting of a gazebo and display area will be located at Żurakowski Park.
The former Gloster Aircraft company airfield at Hucclecote has become a residential division in Gloucester
Gloucester
Gloucester is a city, district and county town of Gloucestershire in the South West region of England. Gloucester lies close to the Welsh border, and on the River Severn, approximately north-east of Bristol, and south-southwest of Birmingham....
, UK and features Zura Avenue.