Zygmunt Pulawski - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Zygmunt Puławski was a Polish

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...

aircraft designer and pilot. He invented a gull-wing aircraft design, also known as "Puławski wing" and constructed a series of Polish PZL

PZL

PZL was the main Polish aerospace manufacturer of the interwar period, based in Warsaw, functioning in 1928-1939...

fighters

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...

He was born 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...

. In the summer of 1901, during the Soviet offensive in 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...

, he volunteered for a Boy Scout

Zwiazek Harcerstwa Polskiego

Związek Harcerstwa Polskiego is the coeducational Polish Scouting organization recognized by the World Organization of the Scout Movement and the World Association of Girl Guides and Girl Scouts. It was founded in 1918 and currently is the largest Scouting organization in Poland...

battalion. In late 1920 he commenced studies at Warsaw University of Technology

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 . The student body numbers 36,156 , mostly full-time. There are 17 faculties covering almost all fields of...

. He was a member of the Aviation Section of the Students' Mechanical Club, where he constructed some gliders

Glider (sailplane)

A glider or sailplane is a type of glider aircraft used in the sport of gliding. Some gliders, known as motor gliders are used for gliding and soaring as well, but have engines which can, in some cases, be used for take-off or for extending a flight...

. He distinguished himself as a thorough and able student. In 1925 he graduated from the University, receiving the Engineer

Professional Engineer

Regulation of the engineering profession is established by various jurisdictions of the world to protect the safety, well-being and other interests of the general public, and to define the licensure process through which an engineer becomes authorized to provide professional services to the...

title, and left for practice in the Breguet works in France

France

The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...

. After his return, he served in the national service, completing military aviation school in Bydgoszcz and becoming a pilot. From 1927 he became a main designer of the Central Aviation Workshops

Centralne Warsztaty Lotnicze

Centralne Warsztaty Lotnicze - Central Aviation Workshops was the Polish state-owned aircraft repair works and manufacturer in Warsaw, active between 1918 and 1928. The workshops were created in November 1918 and located in Warsaw at the fringe of airport in Mokotów at 2a Puławska Street....

(CWL) in Warsaw, soon reorganized into the PZL

PZL

PZL was the main Polish aerospace manufacturer of the interwar period, based in Warsaw, functioning in 1928-1939...

(Państwowe Zakłady Lotnicze - State Aviation Works).

To meet a requirement of the Polish military department, in 1928 Puławski designed a modern all-metal high-wing fighter with an inline engine, PZL P.1

PZL P.1

-Bibliography:* Cynk, Jerzy B. History of the Polish Air Force 1918-1968. Reading, Berkshire, UK: Osprey Publishing Ltd., 1972. ISBN 0-85045-039-X.* Cynk, Jerzy B. Polish Aircraft, 1893-1939. London: Putnam & Company Ltd., 1971. ISBN 0-370-00085-4....

. For the P.1, he invented a gull-wing design, giving the pilot an excellent view from his cockpit. The P.1 was flown in 1929 and met with great interest in the world. Its wing design became also known as "Puławski wing" or "Polish wing", and was later copied in some other designs in the world. The P.1 was not produced, in a favour of Puławski's next designs with a radial engine, preferred by the Polish Air Force. A development of the P/1 was the PZL P.6

PZL P.6

with a radial engine, first flown in 1930. With a pilot Bolesław Orliński, it won a National Air Races

National Air Races

The National Air Races were a series of pylon and cross-country races that took place in the United States from 1920 to 1949. The science of aviation, and the speed and reliability of aircraft and engines grew rapidly during this period; the National Air Races were both a proving ground and...

in the USA. It was named the best fighter in the world by some of military press at that time. Its improved variant, PZL P.7

PZL 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....

, was produced for 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...

(150 made). In early 1931 Puławski designed another fighter development PZL P.8, returning to his favourite inline engine. In 1930, he was also ordered to start working upon the P.7 development, with a stronger engine and begun design work upon the PZL P.11

PZL P.11

The PZL P.11 was a Polish fighter aircraft, designed in the early 1930s by PZL in Warsaw. It was briefly considered to be the most advanced fighter aircraft design in the world...

then.

Puławski also flew aircraft in the Warsaw Aeroclub

Polish Aero Club

Aeroklub Polski is the Polish central association of persons practising air sports or recreational flying. It was founded in 1921 and is a member of the Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. It has a headquarters in Warsaw....

. He died on March 21, 1931 in a crash of his newest amphibious

Amphibious aircraft

An amphibious aircraft or amphibian is an aircraft that can take off and land on either land or water. Fixed-wing amphibious aircraft are seaplanes that are equipped with retractable wheels, at the expense of extra weight and complexity, plus diminished range and fuel economy compared to planes...

flying boat

Flying boat

A flying boat is a fixed-winged seaplane with a hull, allowing it to land on water. It differs from a float plane as it uses a purpose-designed fuselage which can float, granting the aircraft buoyancy. Flying boats may be stabilized by under-wing floats or by wing-like projections from the fuselage...

PZL.12

-References:*Glass, Andrzej. Polskie konstrukcje lotnicze 1893-1939 . Warsaw: WKiŁ, 1977 .-See also:...

in Warsaw, at the age of 29 (the plane fell due to strong wind, after take-off). After his death, the PZL P.11

PZL P.11

The PZL P.11 was a Polish fighter aircraft, designed in the early 1930s by PZL in Warsaw. It was briefly considered to be the most advanced fighter aircraft design in the world...

project was finished by Wsiewołod Jakimiuk, becoming the main Polish fighter during the Invasion of Poland

Invasion of Poland (1939)

The Invasion of Poland, also known as the September Campaign or 1939 Defensive War in Poland and the Poland Campaign in Germany, was an invasion of Poland by Germany, the Soviet Union, and a small Slovak contingent that marked the start of World War II in Europe...

1939. Additionally, a faster export model PZL P.24

PZL P.24

|-References:NotesCitationsBibliography* Axworthy, Mark. Third Axis, Fourth Ally. London: Arms and Armour, 1995. ISBN 1-85409-267-7.* Bernád, Dénes. Rumanian Air Force: The Prime Decade 1938-1947. Carrollton, TX: Squadron/Signal Publications Inc, 1999. ISBN 0-89747-402-3.* Cynk, Jerzy B. Polish...

, based entirely on Puławski's construction features, was developed and sold to some countries.

Puławski was one of the most talented Polish designers. Partly due to his death, Puławski's fighters, most modern in the early 1930s, had not been replaced with modern successors before 1939, when they were already obsolete.

A list of Puławski's designs

Designation	description, first flight/serial production
PZL P.1 PZL P.1 -Bibliography:* Cynk, Jerzy B. History of the Polish Air Force 1918-1968. Reading, Berkshire, UK: Osprey Publishing Ltd., 1972. ISBN 0-85045-039-X.* Cynk, Jerzy B. Polish Aircraft, 1893-1939. London: Putnam & Company Ltd., 1971. ISBN 0-370-00085-4....	fighter prototype, 1-engine high wing, 1929/-
PZL P.2	fighter project, 1-engine high wing, not built
PZL P.6 PZL P.6 -Bibliography:* Cynk, Jerzy B. History of the Polish Air Force 1918-1968. Reading, Berkshire, UK: Osprey Publishing Ltd., 1972. ISBN 0-85045-039-X.* Cynk, Jerzy B. Polish Aircraft, 1893-1939. London: Putnam & Company Ltd., 1971. ISBN 0-370-00085-4....	fighter prototype, 1-engine high wing, 1930/-
PZL P.7 PZL 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....	fighter, 1-engine high wing, 1930/1932
PZL P.8	fighter prototype, 1-engine high wing, 1931/-
PZL P.9	fighter project, 1-engine high wing, not built
PZL P.10	fighter project, 1-engine high wing,
PZL P.11 PZL P.11 The PZL P.11 was a Polish fighter aircraft, designed in the early 1930s by PZL in Warsaw. It was briefly considered to be the most advanced fighter aircraft design in the world...	fighter, 1-engine high wing, 1931/1934
PZL.12 PZL.12 -References:*Glass, Andrzej. Polskie konstrukcje lotnicze 1893-1939 . Warsaw: WKiŁ, 1977 .-See also:...	amphibious flying boat, 1-engine high wing, 1931