Solemn flag raising presided over by the Chief of the Air and Space Staff

• The event, on the occasion of the celebration of the day of the Patron Saint of the City of Madrid, took place in the gardens of the Discovery of the Plaza de Colón.

The Chief of Staff of the Air and Space Army (JEMA), Army General Javier Salto Martínez-Avial, presided over the solemn flag-raising ceremony held today in the Discovery Gardens in Plaza de Colón. A flag raising on the occasion of the festivity of San Isidro, patron saint of Madrid. The JEMA was accompanied, among other civilian and military authorities, by the Mayor of Madrid José Luis Martínez-Almeida Navasqüés.

With this act, the Armed Forces pay homage and express their recognition to the city of Madrid. On this occasion, the flag raising was carried out by the Air and Space Army. The Joint Honours Company was made up of four Sections, with Command, the Honours Squadron's Gastador Squadron, and the Air and Space Army General Air Command's Music Band Unit.

·         The Army Section belongs to the Infantry Regiment ‘Inmemorial del Rey’ nº1. This Regiment is part of the Army Headquarters and is the responsible Unit  for providing the ‘Palacio de Buenavista’ Barracks with the security, services and support required for its operation. It is also the mission of this Regiment to provide security to the authorities that may be determined in each case, and to render the honours of ordinance that may be entrusted to it within the municipality of Madrid and, exceptionally, in other municipalities. 

·         The Honours Section of the Navy Headquarters, whose main task is to represent the Navy in military events, thus contributing to the dissemination of Naval and Defence culture. 

·         The Civil Guard Section is part of the Reserve and Security Group number 1, located in the town of Valdemoro and constituted as such in 1988. It is a specialised and experienced unit in the provision of services in special security devices on the occasion of major events, as well as in guaranteeing the security of high-ranking personalities, assets of special value and collaborating in the front line of the relief devices in disasters and public calamities occurring in our territory and abroad.  

·         The Air and Space Army Section belongs to the Honours Squadron of the Air and Space Army Headquarters Group Security Group. Unit in charge of the rendering of honours located at Cuatro Vientos Air Base. This Squadron's secondary mission is the security and ground defence of military facilities, both on national territory and in the area of operations. All members of the Honours Squadron hold the title of ‘Parachute Fighter’.

Flag raising teamcomposed of personnel from the three armies and the Guardia Civil.

The sequence of events has been as follows:

• Honours to JEMA
• Review of the Joint Honours Company
• Flag Raising
• Joint Honours Company Parade 

The flag raising ceremony in the Plaza de Colón is held on a regular monthly basis. It is also held four times a year on an extraordinary occasion, known as a ‘solemn raising’. The first of these four solemn raising ceremonies is on 15 May, on the occasion of the feast of San Isidro. The second is on 19 June, the anniversary of the proclamation of HM the King, and is co-chaired by the President of the General Council of the Judiciary and the President of the Supreme Court. The third is held on 12 July, coinciding with the anniversary of the date on which the Constitutional Court came into operation, and is presided over by the President of the Constitutional Court. The last of the year is held on 6 December, the day of the Spanish Constitution, and is co-chaired by the presidents of the Congress and the Senate.

The flag is 300 square metres (21 x 14) and weighs 35 kilos. It was raised for the first time in 2001, when the previous 21-metre mast was replaced by the current 50-metre mast. This mast has a rotating head that moves in the same direction as the wind, thus preventing the flag from wrapping around the mast, which weighs almost 20 tonnes and is anchored on a footing resting on four pillars in the Colón underground car park.