125º Anniversary of the Spanish Air Force Academy

August 2013

Coinciding with the 125^th Anniversary of the Spanish Air Force Academy, two open house days were organized at the Academy for the very first time.

 

We were told to be at the main gate at 7:45 am (at the crack of dawn!) for getting our visitor passes before proceeding inside. The first act included the hoisting of the Spanish flag and a parade, with the mayor of San Javier, welcoming us and proposing that this type of visit be repeated annually and not every 125 years!

 

After the parade we were taken to the conference room where we watched a movie describing the premises and explaining the training undergone by the cadets. Later, an officer expanded the information and answered visitors' questions, giving us the opportunity (at least to some of us!) of realizing how thorough the human and technical 4-year training received by the cadets really is.

 

We also had the opportunity to learn that the Águila squadron, specializing in aerial acrobatics, is comprised of volunteer academy instructors.

We then visited the museum where we had the chance to see small models of airplanes based here, as well as a number of uniforms, weapons, trophies, etc. and a photo signed by a famous American actor.

 

We finally walked through the rest of the premises all the way to the hangar and runways. It is interesting to point out that both the control tower and the runways are shared with the civil airport of San Javier, which means the air traffic controllers are soldiers. Since we were in a military area, the first thing I asked was if we could take pictures; luckily, the answer was "yes".

 

I would just like to conclude saying that waking up early was more than worth. We were always treated very friendly and I had a great time. This was my first contact with soldiers since I did not do the military service, mandatory back when I was a young man.