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WOLFGANG SCHMIDT
1942–2007
Elected in 2001
“For outstanding contributions to computational aerodynamics and
air vehicle design and engineering, and for promoting international
leadership and cooperation.”
BY EARLL MURMAN AND ANTONY JAMESON
D R. WOLFGANG SCHMIDT was elected a Foreign Associate
of the National Academy of Engineering in 2001 for “outstanding
contributions to computational aerodynamics and air vehicle
design and engineering, and for promoting international
leadership and cooperation.” He collapsed in his wife’s arms
on November 2, 2007, while dancing after dinner at a favorite
Austrian hotel. His death was officially confirmed shortly after
midnight. Wolfgang’s contributions to aerospace engineering,
his talent for bringing people together, and his ability to bring
out the best in everyone will have a lasting impact on the
aerospace profession.
Born on February 8, 1942, in Duisburg, Germany, Wolfgang
lived with his mother in the small village of Pfalzfeld until his
father returned from captivity during World War II. He attended
school in Pfalzfeld and the gymnasium in Duisburg before
enrolling at the Technical University in Aachen. An expert
swimmer and water polo player, he also enjoyed hiking and
climbing in the mountains.
Upon receiving his Diploma of Aeronautics and Astronautics
in 1966, he was employed as an aerodynamics engineer at
Dornier GmbH in Friedrichshafen. Mr. Max, the head of the
aerodynamic and flight dynamic department, asked his assistant
Fräulein Weißenberger to meet Wolfgang at the main gate as
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240 MEMORIAL TRIBUTES
he reported to Dornier, and two weeks later he and Ingrid
Weißenberger had their first dance. They were married on May
29, 1971, in Immenstaad at the Hersberg Monastery on the shore
of the Bodensee.
Wolfgang continued working at Dornier and its successors
until his retirement, and Friedrichshafen was the couple’s home
for all but 10 years during which they lived in Munich. Wolfgang
and Ingrid had two daughters, Maren and Anika, and two
grandchildren. While Wolfgang pursued his interests in
aerospace engineering, Ingrid pursued her artistic talents as a
painter. Together they enjoyed time at their mountain cottage
in Austria.
For the first four years at Dornier, Wolfgang was involved
in the aeronautical design of wings and control surfaces for
vertical take-off and landing (VTOL) and supersonic aircraft
and missiles. Simultaneously, he pursued his doctoral studies
in aeronautical engineering at the Technical University of
Aachen, where he received his doctorate in 1972. As head of
the Fluid Mechanics Group from 1970 to 1974, he also worked
on the design of gas centrifuges for uranium enrichment, which
led to a patent for gas bearings.
By 1974, Wolfgang had transitioned to the development and
application of computational fluid dynamics (CFD) methods
for compressible flow. In recognition of his management and
leadership abilities, Dornier promoted him to chief of the
Computational Fluid Dynamics Department. Starting with
linear-panel and then transonic small-disturbance-potential
methods, Wolfgang was a major contributor to the rapid
development of compressible CFD methods for full-potential,
Euler, and then Navier-Stokes equations for three-dimensional
aircraft configurations.
During this fertile period of his career, Wolfgang established
international partnerships with leading CFD innovators, putting
Dornier in the forefront of CFD development and application.
Collaboration with Antony Jameson at Princeton University
and Eli Turkel of Tel Aviv University led to the classic AIAA
Paper 81-1269, “Numerical Solutions of the Euler Equations by
Finite Volume Methods Using Runge-Kutta Time-Stepping
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WOLFGANG SCHMIDT
Schemes,” which was presented at the 14th Fluid and Plasma
Dynamics Conference in Palo Alto, California, in 1981. This
paper became the “knee in the curve” of CFD development for
aircraft design, and the field was forever transformed. Dr. Paul
Rubbert, Wolfgang’s counterpart at Boeing Commercial
Aircraft, described his colleague’s work: “During those
formative years for CFD, I found that Wolfgang was always at
the technology leading edge as the challenges changed from
linear potential flow to boundary layer methods to nonlinear
potential flow, Euler Equations, and Navier-Stokes. Time and
time again I found that he had turned a corner and established
a new direction at the same time as I and my group did likewise.
It was almost ‘spooky.’ In my eyes Wolfgang was clearly and
continuously ahead of any other CFD research organization in
Europe.”
Wolfgang’s accomplishments and abilities did not go
unnoticed, and in 1982 he was promoted to director of Dornier’s
Aerodynamics Department and then in 1987 to vice president
for the Dornier 328 Airplane Program, a turboprop regional
aircraft with a supercritical wing. In this position, his
responsibilities included marketing and sales, design and
development, and manufacturing.
In 1990, with the merger of Dornier and MBB, he was elevated
to director, Air Vehicle Engineering Unit, Military Aircraft
Division of MBB/DASA in Munich, where his responsibilities
included all configuration engineering for the F-104, Tornado,
Eurofighter, JPATS Ranger 2000, Airbus components, and the
Saenger and HERMES space-transport concepts. His links to
the international community multiplied as he worked with his
counterparts in the United States, United Kingdom, France,
Indonesia, and Russia.
Following additional consolidation in the German aircraft
industry, Wolfgang was appointed vice president of technology,
strategy, and innovation for Daimler Benz AG in Stuttgart in
1995. From then until his retirement from Daimler Chrysler AG
in 2004, he concentrated on corporate technical strategy and
built important partnerships with industries and universities
in Europe, the United States, Russia, Israel, and Japan.
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After retirement, Wolfgang enjoyed an affiliation with the
Aerospace Department at the Technical University of Munich,
where he was deputy head of the aeronautical section. With
great enthusiasm, he taught two courses, supervised several
master’s students, and led outreach activities to research
foundations and other universities. Wolfgang was also a
consultant to aerospace companies and a contributor to
professional societies until his untimely death.
Wolfgang’s international reach went well beyond the
confines of his employers. He was active in major professional
societies and coordinating bodies. As an NAE foreign associate,
he participated regularly in U.S. meetings and arranged a very
successful European regional meeting of foreign associates.
Perhaps his most important contributions were to the
International Council of Aeronautical Sciences (ICAS). In 1995,
he became a member of the Programme Committee, and from
1998 to 2000 he was committee chair; from 2000 to 2002 he was
ICAS president, and from 2002 to 2004, he was ICAS past
president. Wolfgang was also active in the American Institute
of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), for which he served
on numerous technical and other committees, particularly as
executive chair of the AIAA/ICAS International Air and Space
Symposium in 2003, which marked the 100th anniversary of
powered flight. He was elected a Fellow and then Honorary
Fellow of the AIAA and a Fellow of the Royal Aeronautical
Society. He also was a member of many international
coordinating groups, including AGARD (1985–1991), DGLR
(2000–2008), SAE World Aviation Congress, and the European
GARTEUR (1978–1987).
Wolfgang authored or co-authored more than 100 technical
publications, was awarded five patents, taught four AIAA
professional study seminars, gave numerous talks, and
frequently chaired sessions at technical meetings. Thanks
largely to his leadership and technical contributions, Dornier’s
Aerodynamics Group achieved world-class status.
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Beyond his professional accomplishments, Wolfgang was a
colleague and a connecting link between people, from students
to executives. His infectious enthusiasm, perceptiveness, and
gracious behavior were magnetic. Everyone looked forward to
seeing him and spending time with him, whether it involved a
technical exchange, a strategy session, or a social activity. He
will be sorely missed, but not forgotten by all of his international
colleagues.
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