King and Queen in Granada for Day of Armed Forces

Yesterday, Motril on the coast of Granada played host to Spain’s Armed Forces Day with more than 2,000 soldiers and a dozen ships, which included paratroopers and helicopters on the beachfront. 

 On Saturday, June 3, the events continue as King Felipe and Queen Letizia will preside over the events of the land and air parade through the centre of Granada.

Also in attendance will be the Defence Minister, Margarita Robles, who will witness the participation of more than 3,100 soldiers, 150 vehicles and mobile units and 70 aircraft.

Armed Forces Day is a military spectacle which takes place in a different location each year. This will be the first time the event has been held in a coastal city since 2011, when Malaga was the chosen city.

The event will culminate today with the traditional land and air parade, which will cover 1.3 kilometres through the centre of the capital of Granada.

This year will also see a milestone for Armed Forces Day when for the first time a woman, Corporal Carmen Gómez Hurtado, representing the Parachuting Acrobatic Patrol of the Air and Space Army (PAPEA), will perform the parachute jump carrying the Spanish flag.

Crowds will also be able to see both infantry and mounted units of the Royal Guard, who will march along with the motorised armoured vehicles and motorcycles.

Around 40 planes will take part in the air parade, including fighters and transport planes and around 30 helicopters.

Armed Forces Day 2023 will also commemorate the 35th anniversary of the entry of women into the Armed Forces, the centenary of the first medical air evacuation in Spain, and the 50th anniversary of the Academy of Aviation of the Army and the Air Service of the Civil Guard.

Throughout the week, visitors to Granada have enjoyed many different complementary activities, with exhibitions, such as a search and rescue demonstration from the canine team, a paratrooper jump from the PAPEA, the exhibition of the use of a robot as well as an exercise in cowboy dressage and classical dressage, among others.