Biography

Admiral Abolfath Ardalan, Ph.D

Admiral Abolfath Ardalan, Ph.D., was born on October 21, 1929, in Iran.  He was the 6^th child of Amanollah Ardalan and Roshanak Salour.  His family was one of the most prominent Kurdish families in Iran.  At the time he was born his father was the governor of Gorgan.  He went to various different schools around the Country due to his father’s posts in the government. 

After high school he began his education at the Institute of Technology in Tehran.  However, because of his love and commitment to Naval forces that had just been established in Iran, he joined the Imperial Iranian Navy and was among the first group of Iranian students who traveled to England to continue his studies in the field of Electrical Engineering. 

After returning to Iran and beginning his post in the Navy, he married Mahvash Amirshahi on July 29, 1956.  They moved to the United States in 1963 where he complete his studies at the U.S. Naval Post Graduate School in Monterey, California. There, he received his master’s degree in Engineeing and a second Bachelors degree in Mathematics.  They returned to Iran in 1967.

From 1947 to 1973 he served in the Imperial Iranian Navy where led innovation efforts to bolster the Navy’s technological capabilities and lastly served as Deputy Command in Chief where he was involved in provisioning the Iranian Navy with the most sophisticated systems available in the West. (e.g., first gas turbine powered destroyer with 20 Km. range SS missile, and the largest Hovercraft squadron in the world developed under the direction and management of the Iranian Navy.) 

In 1973 he was honored to be selected by the Shah to become the Managing Director and founder of Iran’s Electronics Industry (IEI) where he employed over 3,000 engineers and scientists.  IEI had its headquarters in Tehran as well as a high technology manufacturing and research facility in Shiraz.  Since many of his employees were English speaking foreign nationals, he built an American school in Shiraz to accommodate the educational needs of their children.  This helped attract top talent from all over world which led to the success of IEI which is in operation in both Tehran and Shiraz to date.

After the Iranian revolution in 1979, he and his family migrated to the United States and resided in Vienna, Virginia.  He was Director of Technology Ventures at the Airspace Management Systems division of Westinghouse Electronic Systems. He restarted his career with a positive outlook without ever looking back.  While at Westinghouse, he pursued his Doctor of Science degree at the George Washington University, and in 1993 received his Ph.D. in Engineering Management. 

During the last years of his life, he formed his own consulting and held management seminars around the world and become Professor of graduate studies at the University of Maryland University College and Catholic University.  He enjoyed teaching immensely and had a great relationship with his students whom he often helped with their careers and business ventures.

He is survived by his wife and three children, Faroukh, Babak and Roshan.  Between his three children, there are six beautiful grand children.  He was very close to his family and friends and touched everyone’s lives in a special way.  He was an extraordinary man who touched the lives of many.  He was the personification of grace and goodness with an inexhaustible passion for life and an ever smiling face.  He was a uniquely humble and honorable man who lived his life by accomplishing his goals and passions

He will be terribly missed by all.