ARCHIVED - Historic Spanish air force buildings to be used for cultural events in Los Alcázares

Los Alcázares was home to the first military seaplane base in Spain over 100 years ago

Historic Spanish air force academy buildings in Los Alcázares are to be ceded to the Town Hall to be used for cultural projects and events as the council strives to make the most of its aviation heritage, according to the terms of an agreement signed on Thursday by the local Mayor, Mario Pérez Cervera, and Margarita Robles, the acting Minister for Defence in the national government.

Due to its location next to the calm water of the Mar Menor Los Alcázares played a very important part in the development of military aeronautics in Spain, being home to the first hydro-plane base which was built in 1915. This was the time when the military potential of aircraft was first being developed and exploited on a large scale, and the installation remains intact, now housing a museum which includes photographic and audiovisual footage of the time when the base was in action.

As a result of the agreement signed on Thursday some of the buildings which were used in the very early days of Spain’s aeronautical history will now be home to exhibitions, conferences and musical events, putting those which are currently not being used for military purposes to good use. Among the likely candidates is the former air base hospital, a fine example of early 20^th century Mediterranean architecture which bears the “rokiski” insignia designed by Princess Beatrice of Saxe-Coburg and Gotha. Beatrice was a granddaughter of Queen Victoria who married into the Spanish royal family, and the insignia she designed was later adopted by the Spanish air force: her husband, Alfonso of Orléans, was a pilot who was in charge of the Los Alcázares air base in its early years.

At the same time, Mario Cervera is keen for the telecommunications building, which contains decorative artisan tiles depicting Don Quijote, to be one of those made available to the Town Hall. In his view, the recent change of heart on the part of the Ministry in allowing use to be made of the air base is an ideal opportunity to encourage cultural activity and tourism in Los Alcázares after “the worst flooding in living memory”, and he even considers it possible that the University of Murcia could locate its Tourism faculty on the shore of the Mar Menor.

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