Dr. Jan Roskam
(1930 – 2022)

Past President

Dr. Roskam retired as the Dean E. Ackers Distinguished Professor in Aerospace Engineering at The University of Kansas in Lawrence, Kansas in 2003. He authored a two-volume text called Airplane Flight Dynamics and Automatic Flight Controls and an eigh-volume text called Airplane Design. He co-authored (with Dr. C. Edward Lan) a text called Airplane Aerodynamics and Performance. These texts are used by more than fifty universities and by aerospace companies in the USA and abroad. In addition he authored or co-authored over 150 papers, articles and technical reports. Dr. Roskam was a Fellow in the AIAA (American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics), a Fellow in the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) and a Fellow in the Royal Aeronautical Society (England). He authored of more than 155 publications including 16 textbooks on aeronautical engineering. He worked on the design and development of more than 36 different airplane types. Dr. Roskam also piloted more than 38 different types of airplanes.

Before joining K.U. in 1967, Dr. Roskam had twelve years of experience working for Aviolanda Aircraft Co. (in The Netherlands), for Cessna Aircraft Co. (in Wichita, Kansas) and for The Boeing Company (in Wichita, Kansas and in Seattle, Washington). He received his MSAE (1954) from the Delft University of Technology (The Netherlands) and his Ph.D. in Aeronautics and Astronautics (1965) from The University of Washington (Seattle).

Before co-founding DARcorporation, Dr. Roskam was a consultant to companies in the USA and in Europe and also served as a consultant to NASA, USAF and DARPA. Dr. Roskam had been actively involved in the design and development of the following aircraft: Aviolanda AT 21, Cessna T-37, Boeing TFX design, Boeing SST design, Learjet Models 25, 35/36 and 55, Cessna Citation I, SIAI Marchetti S-211 and Piaggio 180-Avanti. Jan Roskam managed the low speed and transonic speed wind tunnel programs for the SIAI Marchetti S-211 and Piaggio 180-Avanti. In 1991 Jan Roskam co-founded DARcorporation and functioned as president until 2004. He supervised the technical aspects of all consulting work. Dr. Roskam reviewed all consulting work and was involved with all engineering meetings for consulting projects.

Professional Experience

  • President, Design, Analysis and Research Corporation (DARcorporation), Lawrence, KS: 1991-2004

  • Ackers Distinguished Professor of Aerospace Engineering, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS: 1974-2003

  • President, Roskam Aviation and Engineering Corporation, Lawrence, KS: 1972-2001

  • Member, Laboratory Advisory Group, Flight Dynamics Laboratory, WPAFB, Dayton, OH: 1990-1993

  • Member, USAF X-29 Future Applications Committee: 1987-1993

  • Member, Aerospace Engineering Board, National Research Council: 1985-1988

  • Member of various Advisory Committees to NASA: 1976-1985

  • Director, Flight Research Laboratory, Center for Research Inc., Lawrence, KS: 1967-1984

  • Chairman, Department of Aerospace Engineering, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS: 1972-1976

  • Professor of Aerospace Engineering, The University of Kansas, Lawrence, KS: 1967-1974

  • Senior Group Engineer, The Boeing Company, Wichita, KS and Seattle, WA: 1959-1967

  • Preliminary Design Engineer and Senior Aerodynamics Engineer, Cessna Aircraft Company, Wichita, KS: 1957-1959

  • Assistant Chief Designer, Aviolanda Aircraft Company, The Netherlands: 1954-1957

Principal Consulting Work

  • The Boeing Company, Seattle, WA and Wichita, KS

  • Gates Learjet Corporation, Wichita, KS

  • Beech Aircraft Corporation, Wichita, KS

  • Cessna Aircraft Company, Wichita, KS

  • Bell Helicopter Company, Fort Worth, TX

  • Teledyne Brown Engineering, Huntsville, AL

  • SRI International, Stanford, CA

  • Piper Aircraft Corporation, Vero Beach, FL

  • SIAI-Marchetti S.p.A., Sesto Calende, Italy

  • Rinaldo Piaggio S.p.A., Finale Ligure, Italy

  • Grumman Corporation, Bethpage, NY

  • Smith Aircraft Corporation, Bay St.Louis, MS

  • Airbus Industrie, Blagnac, France

Honors

  • Fellow, RAeS: 2010

  • Outstanding Aerospace Engineering Educator by the aerospace engineering seniors in 1990, 1992, 1996, 1998 and 2000

  • Design Awards for leading a team of 30 students and faculty from KU, WSU and KState to a first place win in the first NASA/FAA General Aviation Aircraft Design Competition of 1995, 1997 and 1998.

  • Gould Award for excellence in undergraduate teaching: 1969 and 1996

  • Governor of Kansas General Aviation Award for 1993

  • SAE Distinguished Speaker Award: 1990

  • AIAA Distinguished Lecturer: 1989-1990

  • Fellow, SAE: 1990

  • Fellow, AIAA: 1989

  • AIAA John Leland Atwood Award: 1987

  • University of Kansas Higuchi Award: 1986

  • AIAA General Aviation Award: 1986

  • SAE Forest McFarland Award: 1983

  • Tau Beta Pi, Sigma Gamma Tau, Sigma Xi, Omicron Delta Kappa

  • University of Kansas Ned Fleming Teaching Award

Service

  • Member, Fellow-Peer-Review committee for AIAA: 1990-2000

  • U.S. Editor of the Aircraft Design Journal, a quarterly journal published by Elsevier Publishing, United Kingdom. First issue published in March 1998. This was a three-year appointment. Prof. E. Torenbeek of Delft University of Technology in The Netherlands is the European Editor

  • Member, SAE General Aviation Aircraft Committee for the organization of the 1997 SAE Business Aircraft Meeting in Wichita, Kansas: April 29-May 3, 1997

  • Member, ETAB (Emerging Technologies Applications Board) for the SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers): 1993-1995

  • Member, AIAA (American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics) Aircraft Design Technical Committee: 1982-1994

  • Organizer of the Session on Aircraft Design Methodology at the SAE Business Aircraft Meeting in Wichita, Kansas: May 17-19, 1993

  • Served as committee member on the PhD committee for Mr. J. Middel of Delft University of Technology, The Netherlands at the request of Professor E. Torenbeek, chairman of that committee. Was invited and accepted to review the dissertation and to attend its public defense in Delft, The Netherlands on April 13, 1992

  • Member of the USAF/DARPA X-29 Future Applications Committee: 1992

  • Member, X-29 Applications Committee, USAF: 1991

  • AIAA Distinguished Lecturer: 1989 – 1991

  • Expert Member, Search Committee for a Professorship in Aeronautics at the Royal Institute of Technology (KTH), Stockholm, Sweden

Short Courses

Dr. Roskam taught over 150 short courses:

  • Through KU Division of Continuing Education: Dr. Roskam was active in teaching short courses on the subjects of Airplane Design, Airplane Performance, and Airplane Stability and Control through the KU Division of Continuing Education. These courses were taught in the following countries: USA, France, England, Germany, Singapore, Canada and Australia.

  • Through NSF: A two-week short course, sponsored by NSF (National Science Foundation) on Airplane Design for a group of twenty US university professors at KU from Airplane Design at KU, in 1990, July 13-24 (2 weeks), attendees: 19 university professors. In 1991 he did the same course for a group of 20 university professors (July 22 – August 2, 1991).

Community Service

  • Member, Board of Trustees, Ottawa Public Education Trust: 1990 – 1994