Cadiz stands out for having an important presence of the Armed Forces. Armed Forces in your province. With a strong military tradition, this province has become a strategic enclave for national defense and security.

The province of Cadiz has several military bases that play a vital role in protecting national interests and safeguarding Spanish sovereignty. For example, some of the most important are the Rota Naval Base and the Marine Infantry Academy in San Fernando..

In addition to these military bases, Cadiz is also home to other Army and Air Force facilities and detachments.

These units contribute to the defense of the territory and perform support tasks in emergency situations, such as fighting forest fires or humanitarian aid in cases of natural disasters.

The presence of the Armed Forces in the province of Cadiz not only has an impact on the defense field, but also on the local economy. Military bases generate employment and contribute to the economic development of the region. 

The main bases and barracks of the Armed Forces in the province of Cadiz are the following:

Rota Naval Base

About 9,500 people work in Rota, half of them with the US Navy. US Navy and the other half with the Spanish Navy. Spanish Navy. It is the main base of the Navy, with important units: the nucleus of the Fleet and its ships, the High Readiness and Operation Atalanta Maritime Barracks, the Navy Aircraft Flotilla, the Combat Training and Assessment Center (CEVACO) and the Cadiz Arsenal Headquarters itself.

El Retin

It is the Navy’s amphibious training camp. More than 11,000 people pass through there every year for different exercises, not only from Spain but also from allied countries. Of 5.3 hectares, it has a beach area and an inland area with shooting ranges.

Puntales Naval Base

The Cadiz base hosts several maritime surveillance patrol boats, hydrographic vessels and the Navy’s Cadiz Diving Unit. Puntales is also the headquarters of the Maritime Action Force (COMARDIZ) and the naval detachment of Alboran Island depends on it.

Navy NCO School

Future Navy NCOs are trained in San Fernando. Approximately 200 students receive their sergeant’s dispatch each year from both the General Corps of the Navy and the Marine Corps. The Pantheon of Illustrious Seafarers is also located there.

Instituto Hidrográfico de La Marina

The Hydrographic Institute of the Navy is located in Cadiz, whose mission is to ensure the safety of navigation in its aspects of obtaining and disseminating information about the sea and the coast and contribute to the progress of Nautical Science: cartography, hydrographic surveys and study of the underwater relief of our coasts,…

Royal Navy Observatory

In the downtown area of San Fernando, there is another jewel of the Navy in Cadiz, the Royal Observatory. Since 1976, its time section has been officially responsible for setting the legal time in Spain. In that area of San Fernando, in the old captaincy general, there is also the Naval Museum.

Torregorda Test Centers

This center at the Torregorda curve belongs to the Esteban Terradas Institute of Aerospace Technology (INTA). Its main task is to develop lines of ballistic experimentation applied to the execution of tests and trials. It receives armament and monitors Army and Navy ammunition that has exceeded its probable life. Their sounds are familiar. 

La Carraca

In addition to historical buildings, the San Fernando station is home to the training ship ‘Juan Sebastián de Elcano’. The Naval Beach Group and its landing craft and another of the Navy’s oldest ships, the Contramaestre Casado, are also based there.

Marine Corps: TEAR and TERSUR

The Marine Infantry Brigade-Army Tercio and the Tercio Sur, as well as the Marine Infantry headquarters, are based at the Battalion Barracks in the naval town of San Carlos.

Camposoto

San Fernando hosts key Army units in Camposoto. The 4th Coast Artillery Regiment has its facilities there, and new soldiers are trained in the barracks, with the 2nd Troop Training Center. In addition, there is USAC, the barracks support services unit.

Eva 11

The most remote and only Air Force unit in the province. The 11th Air Surveillance Squadron is located on Pico del Montero, in Los Alcornocales, and is part of the Aerospace Surveillance and Control System.