Paul Jonathan Morgan (29 July 1948 – 12 May 2001) was a British engineer who co-founded Ilmor Engineering with

Mario Illien Mario Illien (born 2 August 1949) is a Swiss engineer specialising in motorsport engine design and comes from Chur in the Graubünden, Canton of Graubünden, Switzerland. Despite living in a country in which motor racing was banned in 1955 (when ...

in 1983. Ilmor had major successes providing engines for motorsport and won three Queen's Awards for Export Achievement. He was killed in a plane crash at Sywell,

Northamptonshire Northamptonshire ( ; abbreviated Northants.) is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It is bordered by Leicestershire, Rutland and Lincolnshire to the north, Cambridgeshire to the east, Bedfordshi ...

on 12 May 2001. Morgan was an engineer at

Cosworth Cosworth is a British automotive engineering company founded in London in 1958, specialising in high-performance internal combustion engines, powertrain, and electronics for auto racing, automobile racing (motorsport) and mainstream Automotiv ...

from 1970 to 1983. In 1983 he left Cosworth to form Ilmor with fellow engineer Mario Illien. Ilmor was set up with backing from

Roger Penske Roger Searle Penske (born February 20, 1937), also known as "the Captain", is an American auto racing team owner, businessman, and former professional driver. Penske is the owner of Team Penske, the Indianapolis Motor Speedway, IndyCar, and ...

and achieved its first race win powering

Mario Andretti Mario Gabriele Andretti (born February 28, 1940) is an American former racing driver and businessman, who competed in Formula One from to , and American open-wheel racing, IndyCar from 1964 USAC Championship Car season, 1964 to 1994 IndyCar se ...

's Lola at the

Long Beach Grand Prix The Grand Prix of Long Beach (known as Acura Grand Prix of Long Beach since 2019 for naming rights reasons) is an IndyCar Series race held on a street circuit in Downtown Long Beach, downtown Long Beach, California. It was the premier race on the ...

. In 1989, Morgan and Illien decided to enter Formula One. Paul Morgan was killed instantly when his Hawker Sea Fury overturned on landing.

David Coulthard David Marshall Coulthard (born 27 March 1971) is a British former racing driver and sports broadcasting, broadcaster from Scotland who competed in Formula One from to . Nicknamed "DC", Coulthard was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' ...

won the the day after Morgan's death in a Mercedes-Ilmor powered

McLaren McLaren Racing Limited ( ) is a British auto racing, motor racing team based at the McLaren Technology Centre in Woking, Surrey, England. The team is a subsidiary of the McLaren Group, which owns a majority of the team. McLaren is best known a ...

. Coulthard opted not to participate in the traditional champagne celebration as a mark of respect. Morgan's widow reduced her shareholding of Ilmor in 2002, selling 10% to

DaimlerChrysler Mercedes-Benz Group AG (formerly Daimler-Benz, DaimlerChrysler, and Daimler) is a German multinational automotive company headquartered in Stuttgart, Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is one of the world's leading car manufacturers. Daimler-B ...

. In 2005, DaimlerChrysler acquired all the remaining shares from Mrs. Morgan, Mario Illien, and Roger Penske.

References

*Loyn, David (24 May 2001). ''Obituary: Paul Morgan''. ''

The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...

'' * {{DEFAULTSORT:Morgan, Paul John 1948 births 2001 deaths Aviators killed in aviation accidents or incidents in England British automotive engineers Victims of aviation accidents or incidents in 2001