#OpinionMP | San Javier, the city of air and space. Posted by Celia Martinez Mora

Murcia. The Spanish NASAand that is Spanish Space Agency Included in the reform of the Science, Technology and Innovation Act, in the 2021 National Security Strategy and in the Strategic Project for Space for Economic Recovery and Transformation (PERTE), it is a valuable asset.

The economic endowment of its administration exceeds 500 million euros annually. Through it, we participate in international scientific, technological and industrial space programs, addressing aspects such as communications, ground observation, navigation, security, climate change adaptation or impact monitoring. with her, The progress in science and innovation is unquestionable.

As in other European countriesAnd the It is hoped that this exceptional agency will contribute to territorial structure and opportunities for the entire Spanish territory, Because of this, it received 19 proposals for the site according to specific criteria. I won’t go into the compelling reasons for the rest of the nominations, but I will say that affirmative action from the global to the local is in a new framework of sustainable growth that is happening in San Javier’s candidacy is unique.

“In this nomination we have the opportunity to contribute to the restoration and care of the Mar Menor ecosystem and its inhabitants.”

Specifically, the decentralization of the capital’s institutions with an emphasis on combating population displacement is a hypothesis to be achieved for this region affected by the environmental degradation of its ecosystem and which is immersed in an important process of social and economic transformation that wants to be a world of reference. Therefore, in this nomination we have the opportunity to contribute to the restoration and care of the ecosystem Mar Menor and its cities.

On the other hand, from a social point of view, the long and close relationship between the municipality of San Javier and aeronautics is unbeatable since 1914. Alfonso XIII Mar Menor chose this corner as the perfect place to start his Spanish flight. It was in 1917 when V.V Santiago de la Ribera The foundation has been built.

since then, The General Air Academy and military life deeply influenced Santiago de la Ribera and San Javier in their social developmentLay in his story. There isn’t a single exhibition, archive, or retrospective event that doesn’t count in some way The tangled web of air navigation and the daily life of the municipality. The bond resists centuries and remains unchanged, with an intact illusion even in new generations.

For a few days we are greeted by a so-called figure from the trainees Santiago de la Ribera. This picture is precisely the collection of memories of the city and its inhabitants which we saw every afternoon strolling through our streets in blue uniforms amid the sounds of joy and animation. The buildings were filled with children who were doing their military service as well as cadets, cadets and officers themselves.

It was a blue wave of people that was associated with the customs and habits of the citizens. Then only IES, Ruiz de AldaStudents were greeted by a fleet of buses that included gray-blue military buses interspersed with public transportation buses. The mutual service of the base to the population and vice versa was and continues to be seamless.

“We proudly carry the AGA motto with no family in it”

At this educational center we met boys and girls from different schools and almost all of us had a friend who lived in Ciudad del Aire. In the same way, nearly all of us have attended the delivery of dispatches, the pledge of allegiance, a parachuting exhibition, or Eagle Patrol. Even today, we proudly carry the AGA logo with no family in it, simply because of those connections that make you feel part of the whole that builds cities.

It is true that in other places with military bases something similar happens, but in this place of less seasonal population it turns into a convergence. By this I mean it Quality of life resulting from balanced coexistence and the ability to host families It is a tradition in this municipality. We are used to welcoming visitors and tourists to make them stay. For its good climate and landscape, but also for being able to be a city while still being a city with a quality of life.

On a more economical level, the facilities Longs to San Javier Airport They can win again and not only that, but they will also get active From Corvera airport very near With new links and a larger flow of passengers. It is about making profitable and improving what already exists by experimenting with knowledge and having to control the area’s airspace for safety.

The Access to families and specialized jobs with technology centers and universities nearby In the same way, it is an investment for the present given the ability, in addition to the declared public commitment, of the commercial and institutional fabric to start it up from 2023. The collective support of the business and the productive fabric, of institutions and sources of knowledge is the relationship of proximity that unites them within the units. It’s kind of “all for one”.

Without going any further, the Space Agency of the Netherlands is located in Noordwijk, a municipality smaller than San Javier of fishing origin but considered a benchmark of sustainable tourism and which today has a permanent exhibition on space (Space Expo). It would be great if San Javier and the region of Murcia had a permanent exhibition of “Air City” And don’t say anymore, with one about space.

The strategic location in front of the Mediterranean Sea and its land, sea and air links San Javier as a strong commitment not only to meet the criteria set, but also because it involves a positive action to reorient development towards knowledge and sustainability.