Dr. Janusz Stanislaw Przemieniecki

1927 - 2017

PRZEMIENIECKI, Dr. Janusz Stanislaw January 30, 1927 November 29, 2017 Dr. Janusz S. Przemieniecki, died in Venice, FL on November 29th at the age of 90. He was preceded in death by his beloved wife of 50 years, Stefania "Fiona" Przemieniecki (née Rudnicka), his parents Leon and Maria (Sarnacka) Przemieniecki, and his sister Janina Przemieniecka. Surviving are his daughter Anita Maria Przemieniecki Harper, son Christopher John Przemieniecki, grandchildren Nicholas, Maxwell, and Zachary, and cousins Maria Syropolska and Danuta Niemczewska in Poland. Janusz, known as "John" in the USA, was born in Lipno, Poland on January 30th, 1927. As a young boy, Janusz was immersed in an atmosphere of mathematics and science, as his father was a physics/mathematics instructor and his mother was a chemical engineer. His world was shattered on September 1, 1939, with the German invasion of Poland. At the age of 15, Janusz joined the Warsaw Underground and later participated in the 1944 Warsaw Uprising (Baszta Regiment, Company B2, pseudonym "Marian"). After surrender, he was in POW camps before being freed by American forces in 1945. Janusz then joined the Polish 2nd Corps and completed his high school diploma in Italy. Janusz's war experiences have been recorded by the Warsaw Uprising Museum in Poland. (www.1944.pl). In 1946, Janusz immigrated to England with his mother and continued his studies at the University of London (BSc, MSc, and a 1958 PhD in Aeronautical Engineering), with a specialization in Structural Analysis. He began his career at the Bristol Aircraft Corporation, with key roles in design of a Mach 3 stainless steel fighter and the supersonic transport aircraft, later to become the Concorde. In 1954, Janusz married Stefania ("Fiona"), the daughter of General K.S. Rudnicki, D.D.S, who led Polish troops in the WWII Battle of Monte Cassino. The couple initially settled Thornbury, England, near Bristol. Janusz immigrated with his family to America in 1961 and took a faculty position with the Air Force Institute of Technology (AFIT) at Wright Patterson Air Force Base (WPAFB) in Dayton, Ohio. He there earned recognition as a pioneer in the Finite Element Analysis (FEA) field. His text (Theory of Matrix Structural Analysis, 1968, McGraw Hill) became a standard reference in the industry and was used in over 30 universities through 14,000 copies in 11 printings, translation to Japanese, and a paperback reprint in 1985. After serving as Associate Dean for Research, he became Dean of the School of Engineering in 1969. Under his 20 year service as Dean, the School conferred over 200 PhD and 5000 MS degrees, primarily in Aerospace and Electrical Engineering, Engineering Physics, and Operations Research. From 1989 to retirement in 1995, he served as Institute Senior Dean and Scientific Advisor. Dr. Przemieniecki was a Fellow of the American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) and received the Pendray Award for Aerospace Literature. He was Editor-in-Chief of the AIAA Education Series for over 60 books and authored two in the series: Mathematical Methods in Defense Analysis (1990, 1994, 2000) and Finite Element Analysis: New Concepts (2009). His many honors and awards include: Presidential Ranks of Distinguished Executive and Meritorious Executive, Commanders Cross of the Polish Order of Polonia Restituta, Air Force Decoration for Exceptional Civilian Service, Fellow of the City and Guilds of London Institute, Distinguished Service Award from the American Institute of Polish Culture, and three honorary doctoral decrees from the University of London (1988), Warsaw Polytechnic University (1999), and the Polish Military Technical Academy "Wojskowa Akademia Techniczna" (2001). Dr. Przemieniecki was instrumental in the building of two memorials at WPAFB: the Icarus Memorial Statue, honoring AFIT graduates who died in service to our nation, and a USAF Museum Park memorial, honoring airmen who died dropping supplies to Polish freedom fighters during the 1944 Warsaw Uprising. Janusz visited Poland several times after the fall of communism. In 1994, he was a member of the Vice Presidential Delegation at the Warsaw Uprising 50th anniversary ceremonies. He also attended the 65th (2009) and 70th (2014) ceremonies as an invited veteran by Poland. In 2014, he visited his hometown of Lipno, where he was presented with city's Honorary Citizen award and a "key" to the city. Janusz and Fiona moved to Venice, FL in 1995, and became members of the Sarasota and Venice Polish-American Associations. A funeral mass will be held on December 30, 2017 at Our Lady of Lourdes Church in Venice, Florida. In lieu of flowers please donate to the Alzheimer's Association or a charity of your choice. Janusz will be remembered as a thoughtful, loyal, and loving husband, father, grandfather, cousin, and friend. He was devoted to his beloved Poland as well as to his adopted country of America and he dedicated his career towards scientific advances. Janusz was a true "Educator, Mentor, Leader, and Gentleman".