Seville takes over the Presidency of the Ariane 2024 Community of Cities in partnership with Airbus DS
2 February 2024 marked a symbolic moment for the city of Seville, which officially took over the presidency of the Community of Ariane Cities for the year 2024. The handover ceremony took place in a formal setting, with the mayor of Seville, José Luis Sanz, receiving the official medal from his counterpart in Vernon, François Ouzilleau.
Attended by a number of eminent personalities, including AIRBUS Defence and Space’s Director of Programmes and Operations, Miguel Ángel Yagüe Vázquez, and Airbus’s Head of Launcher Programmes, Raúl Medina, accompanied by more than 20 CVA member participants, the event marked the start of a year rich in space events at local, regional, national and European level.
During the handover, the Mayor of Seville was awarded the Vernon medal and two emblematic models of European launchers, an Ariane 6 and a Vega, by his French counterpart. In return, José Luiz Sanz presented François Ouzilleau with a ceramic representing Seville’s traditional industry, as well as a model of Seville’s aerospace industry in the form of the A400M developed by Airbus and SEOSAT, the Spanish observation satellite.
The mayor highlighted the expected impact of this presidency on Seville’s space sector, with the aim of making the city the aerospace capital of Southern Europe by 2024. The CVA and the partnership with Airbus will play a crucial role in achieving this objective.
n addition to official CVA events, the Seville Presidency will be organising key meetings, a technical conference in the aerospace sector, an innovative network for women professionals in the sector (Woman from Ariane Cities Aerospace Meeting), and the summer school for students from CVA member cities, in collaboration with the University of Seville.
Seville City Hall also hosted the CVA Bureau, marking the start of Seville’s Presidency as European Space Capital. Public-private collaboration will be in the spotlight, with more than 50 activities promoted by the Space Forum, a platform made up of more than 40 entities from Seville and Andalusia, with Airbus as the main sponsor of this Presidency.
The Community of Ariane Cities is looking forward to another European Space Year, which will be shaped by the vision and commitment of the city of Seville. The 2024 Presidency promises to be a memorable year for European space transportation, with Seville at the heart of this exciting adventure.
