Richard Harbert Smith (15 January 1894, Dillsboro,

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

– 6 July 1957,

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

Virginia Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic regions of the United States between the East Coast of the United States ...

) was a professor and researcher of

aeronautical engineering Aerospace engineering is the primary field of engineering concerned with the development of aircraft and spacecraft. It has two major and overlapping branches: aeronautical engineering and astronautical engineering. Avionics engineering is s ...

at the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sci ...

, from 1929 to 1945. His academic education was developed at the Moores Hill College ( BS, 1915),

(today,

University of Evansville The University of Evansville (UE) is a private university in Evansville, Indiana. It was founded in 1854 as Carnegie Hall of Moores Hill College, Moores Hill College. The university operates a satellite center, Harlaxton Manor, Harlaxton College ...

); the

Massachusetts Institute of Technology The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a Private university, private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of moder ...

( SB, 1918),

Cambridge Cambridge ( ) is a List of cities in the United Kingdom, city and non-metropolitan district in the county of Cambridgeshire, England. It is the county town of Cambridgeshire and is located on the River Cam, north of London. As of the 2021 Unit ...

(

Greater Boston Greater Boston is the metropolitan region of New England encompassing the municipality of Boston, the capital of the U.S. state of Massachusetts and the most populous city in New England, and its surrounding areas, home to 4,941,632. The most s ...

Massachusetts Massachusetts ( ; ), officially the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders the Atlantic Ocean and the Gulf of Maine to its east, Connecticut and Rhode ...

; and the

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

( MA,Smith R. H. Aerodynamic theory and test of strut forms. Part I ("''This part was submitted in May, 1928, to the Johns Hopkins University in conformity with the requirements for the M.A. degree. The second part will be completed and the whole submitted in 1929 in conformity with the requirements for the Ph.D. degree''"). Aerodynamical Laboratory Bureau of Construction and Repair, U.S. Navy, 1930. NACA-TR-311. (Available in pdf on NASA Technical Reports Server, on August 16, 2023).
/ref> 1928;

PhD A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

,Smith R. H. Aerodynamic theory and test of strut forms. Part II ("''This part was submitted in May, 1929, to the Johns Hopkins University as a doctor’s dissertation''"). Aerodynamical Laboratory Bureau of Construction and Repair, U.S. Navy, 1930. NACA-TR-335. (Available in pdf on NASA Technical Reports Server, on August 16, 2023).
/ref> 1929),

Baltimore Baltimore is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Maryland. With a population of 585,708 at the 2020 census and estimated at 568,271 in 2024, it is the 30th-most populous U.S. city. The Baltimore metropolitan area is the 20th-large ...

Maryland Maryland ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States. It borders the states of Virginia to its south, West Virginia to its west, Pennsylvania to its north, and Delaware to its east ...

. After

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, Prof. Smith worked as an assistant at the

United States Naval Research Laboratory The United States Naval Research Laboratory (NRL) is the corporate research laboratory for the United States Navy and the United States Marine Corps. Located in Washington, DC, it was founded in 1923 and conducts basic scientific research, appl ...

. In 1929, he was an associate physicist at the Navy's laboratory when he was hired by the

as an associate professor of aeronautical engineering, being promoted to full professor in 1931. For many years, he was Dr.

Jerome Clarke Hunsaker Jerome Clarke Hunsaker (August 26, 1886 – September 10, 1984) was an American naval officer and aeronautical engineer, born in Creston, Iowa, and educated at the U.S. Naval Academy and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. His work with Gu ...

's assistant administrator for aeronautical engineering at

MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...

. During the

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

period, Prof. Smith coordinated the

Civilian Pilot Training Program The Civilian Pilot Training Program (CPTP) was a flight training program (1938–1944) sponsored by the United States government with the stated purpose of increasing the number of civilian pilots, though having a clear impact on military prepare ...

and was also instructor for several classes of female engineering trainees for the Curtiss company. In 1945, he left

to go to

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

, hired by the Brazilian government, in a venture led by

Casimiro Montenegro Filho Casimiro Montenegro Filho (29 October 1904 – 26 February 2000) was a Brazilian army and air force officer. He reached the rank of Marechal-do-ar, the highest rank of the Brazilian Air Force The Brazilian Air Force (, FAB) is the air branch ...

, then lieutenant-colonel of the

Brazilian Air Force The Brazilian Air Force (, FAB) is the air branch of the Brazilian Armed Forces and one of the three national uniformed services. The FAB was formed when the Brazilian Brazilian Army Aviation (1919–1941), Army and Brazilian Naval Aviation, Nav ...

, to establish an institute of aeronautics, the ''

Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica The ''Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica'' (ITA; ) is an institution of higher education maintained by the Brazilian Air Force and is located in São José dos Campos, Brazil. ITA is consistently ranked as one of the top engineering school ...

'' (Aeronautical Technology Institute), of which he became the first rector.Rectors and vice-rectors of ITA (portuguese). Site of the ''Instituto Tecnológico de Aeronáutica (ITA)''.
/ref> This was an outstanding contribution to the scientific and technological education in

References

External links

University of Evansville
(earlier Moores Hill College),

.
MIT Archives

Massachusetts Institute of Technology

Johns Hopkins University

Smith, R H - List of Technical Reports. NASA Technical Reports Server (NTRS)

Dr. Jerome Clarke Hunsaker. Article from the Encyclopædia Britannica

Shatswell Ober, "The Story of Aeronautics at M.I.T., 1895 to 1960". Amazon.com site

# ttp://web.mit.edu/museum/ MIT Museum
MIT Department of Aeronautics and Astronautics

Richard Harbert Smith
Wiki of ITA Alumni.
Smith, R. H. Conference "''Brazil, future aviation power''"
(excerpts in

Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...

). Conference held on September 26, 1945, at the Brazilian Education Ministry auditorium, in Rio de Janeiro, invited by the ''Instituto Brasileiro de Aeronáutica'' (Brazilian Institute of Aeronautics). Site of the '' Departamento de Ciência e Tecnologia Aeroespacial - DCTA'' (Brazilian Department of Aerospace Science and Technology). {{DEFAULTSORT:Smith, Richard Harbert 1894 births 1957 deaths American aerospace engineers Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumni Johns Hopkins University alumni People from Dillsboro, Indiana 20th-century American educators Brazilian educators 20th-century American engineers