Pedro López participates in the special decoration commemorating the 10 years of Felipe VI’s reign

On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of Felipe VI’s reign in Spain, 45 aircraft of the Air and Space Force, ranging from the smallest drone to the A330 MRTT, an in-flight refuelling tanker aircraft manufactured by the company Airbus Defence and Space, will wear two special emblems until 19 June 2025 whose purpose is to pay tribute to the head of state.

The logo of one of these vinyls has been designed by the Air and Space Force, transferring the official coat of arms of the Royal House in a schematic way, inspired by the insignia of this army, known as Rokiski, maintaining the essence and symbolism that characterize it. In addition, the Maestranza Aérea de Albacete has been in charge of defining the characteristics of the vinyls, such as their size and thickness of 8 microns.

Once the vinyls were created, the last stage consisted of their actual installation on the aircraft: they had to be placed and sealed by applying a special adhesive and lacquer. It was at this point in the process that ITE joined the activities.

Pedro López at the facilities of the Maestranza Aérea de Albacete. Source: ITE.

Pedro Jesús López Soriano, in charge of the team of 30 ITE employees assigned to MAESAL, and specifically of the aeronautical cleaning and painting workshop, was part of an expedition composed, in addition to him, of three other people: two of them staff of the Maestranza Aérea de Albacete and a military officer who joined as support.

“In order to carry out the labelling of the 45 aircraft we had to visit the Air Bases of Zaragoza, Villanubla in Valladolid, Matacán in Salamanca during the month of September; Torrejón, Getafe and Cuatro Vientos in Madrid; and those of Alcantarilla and San Javier in Murcia”, says Pedro, who also referred to the complexity of the tasks detailing that “when applying the lacquer, it must be ensured that it does not affect the aerodynamics of the aircraft, and it must be done well so that they do not detach during the months that they are going to be kept in the planes and helicopters. Although they could last 10 years if they are not taken off before.”

López Soriano has more than 20 years of experience in the sector, of which the last ten have been working in the Business Technology Integration team. In 2024, with regard to its aeronautical painting work, it has had the opportunity to participate in the lettering of the Air and Space Force aircraft participating in the special operation Pacific Skies 24, which is a multinational military exercise led by the air forces of Spain, France and Germany, and which consisted of a deployment in the Indo-Pacific region. spanning more than 58,000 kilometers across four continents.

“On that occasion, together with two other colleagues from ITE, two members of MAESAL’s civilian staff and one supporting military member; in addition to the work carried out at Albacete Air Base, where we applied the markings to two C.16 Eurofighters from Wing 14, we also travelled to Morón de la Frontera Air Base, in Seville, to place the insignia on two more C.16 Eurofighters from Wing 11, and to Zaragoza Air Base, where we marked two T.23 A400M aircraft from Wing 31,” Pedro explained to us.

To highlight a work of which he is especially proud, in the month of May 2024, the year in which the 50th Anniversary of the 14th Wing of the Air and Space Force is celebrated, he was part of a team together with two more ITE employees and a member of the base who were in charge of labeling a design inspired by the Cervantes figure of Don Quixote on the vertical stabilizer of a C.16 (Eurofighter).

“The truth is that, when you enjoy what you do in your job, it is very satisfying to see the final result painted on the tail of the aircraft,” Pedro concluded.