Ladislao Pazmany

Who was Ladislao Pazmany?

Ladislao Pazmany was an aviation pioneer, aeronautical engineer, designer, builder, pilot, teacher, speaker, and author. Born a Hungarian, Pazmany grew up, went to school and worked in his formative years in Argentina, then immigrated to the United States where he lived for the remainder of his life.

His design engineering stretched from early model airplanes made of wood as a child in Argentina through six decades of work on gliders, small planes, jets, and missiles both for private purchase and for the largest defense contractors in America including Convair, General Dynamics and Rohr. Contributions to the unmanned stealth aircraft were utilized in action during the Iraq War in 2004. And for Ryan the Cloudster was his commercial contribution.

With a passion for small personal aircraft he became recognized as a world authority on landing gear, light aircraft, and flight efficiencies through his books, plans and planes: The Pazmany PL-1 and PL-2, were used for training, the PL-4A, is a single seat VW powered, T-Tailed with folding wings; and the PL-9 Stork is a ¾ adaptation of the Luftwaffe STOL warbird. He was inducted into the Experimental Aircraft Association Hall of Fame in 1997 for his work in homebuilt aircraft.