Torrejón

Torrejón de Ardoz
City
Aerial view of Torrejón de Ardoz
Flag Seal
Location in Madrid, Spain
Torrejón de Ardoz Location of Torrejón within Spain
Coordinates: 40°27′41″N 3°29′52″W / 40.46139°N 3.49778°W / 40.46139; -3.49778Coordinates: 40°27′41″N 3°29′52″W / 40.46139°N 3.49778°W / 40.46139; -3.49778
Country	Spain
Region	Community of Madrid
Comarca	Madrid metropolitan area
Founded	11th century
Government
• Alcalde	Ignacio Vázquez Casavilla (PP)
Area
• City	84.1 km2 (32.49 sq mi)
Elevation	568 m (1,864 ft)
Population (2013)
• Urban	127,132
• Demonym	Torrejonero
Time zone	EST (UTC+1)
Website	Torrejon.es

Torrejón de Ardoz (Spanish pronunciation: [toreˈxon de aɾˈðoθ]) is a municipality in the autonomous community of Madrid, Spain.

It is located 20 km east of the city of Madrid, on the Autovía A-2 (Madrid-Barcelona highway). It is essentially a dormitory town, mostly consisting of apartments, a large mall and a park containing models of many famous European landmarks. It can be reached by bus from Avenida de América bus station in Madrid (approx. 25 minutes) or by commuter train from (in roughly 30 minutes).

The European Union Satellite Centre, an agency of the European Union, is located in Torrejón de Ardoz. It is also the location of the headquarters of the Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial, the Spanish space agency.

There is also a military airbase in Torrejón de Ardoz. This base receives business jets, and its runway can be seen to the right when landing at Madrid's Barajas airport. For years, the United States Air Force occupied the base under agreements made with Francisco Franco, protecting NATO's southern flank. One of the election platforms of Felipe González's Spanish Socialist Workers' Party (PSOE) was to close the base to the American fighter wing. González having been elected, the lease of the then 401st Tactical Fighter Wing (now the 401st Air Expeditionary Wing) was not renewed and the F-16 fighter wing left the base in the early 1990s.