Évora, Portugal, Sept. 25, 2026 (Lusa) - The University of Évora is to set up a centre dedicated to the aeronautics and aerospace sector next to the city's aerodrome, on premises provided by the city council and the IPMA, enabling it to launch new courses in these and other areas, the university announced on Friday.
«Our main focus is the Aerospace Engineering course, which we want to be a benchmark on the national scene», but these premises «can be used for other types of training», said the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Évora (UÉ), António Candeias.
The university's representative spoke to journalists after signing agreements to provide premises between the university, Évora City Council and the national meteorological institute, IPMA, at a ceremony held in a hangar at the municipal aerodrome.
These agreements provide for the transfer to UÉ, for the creation of the centre, of part of the building of a former pilot training school, located at the aerodrome and owned by the municipality, and of the IPMA's Regional Meteorological Centre, situated next to the facility.
Noting that the university had already been aiming to secure facilities to develop Aeronautics and Aerospace, the Vice-Chancellor stated that the centre will provide UÉ with «the conditions to create a course of excellence in these areas and also to support the aeronautical ‘cluster'».
«We are creating the conditions for UÉ to meet the needs of businesses by setting up laboratories that will serve not only for training but also for research,» he added.
António Candeias highlighted that the Aerospace Engineering degree programme at the Alentejo-based university launched in the previous academic year and revealed the institution's intention, with the new centre, to move towards establishing a Master's degree in this field.
«We will begin work on the proposal so that students who are currently in their second year, and those who will complete their third year next year, have the opportunity to continue their studies at the University of Évora and complete the five-year engineering degree,» he emphasised.
The vice-chancellor acknowledged that, with these facilities, the University of Évora could consider setting up «a postgraduate programme or even a master's degree in the field of Risk Management or Civil Protection», as well as in climatology.
«It is the University of Évora's Aeronautics and Aerospace Centre, and we recognise that the infrastructure to be developed here could also support other areas, including robotics and mechatronics,» he stressed.
According to the official, the university plans to invest around €1 million in the facilities, half of which will go towards refurbishing and renovating the premises, and the other half towards purchasing equipment for the laboratories.
«We will have the laboratories on one side,» at the IPMA premises, «the classrooms on the other,» in the former pilot training school building, «and in between the aerodrome where students can gain practical experience,» he pointed out.
António Candeias said that, in addition to these facilities, UÉ will be able to use a hangar for its activities, which the university will share with the pilot training school operating at the municipal aerodrome and Gabriel Pereira Secondary School.
The vice-chancellor predicted that, in the second semester of the current academic year, «it may be possible to include some teaching component» for Aerospace Engineering students at the centre's facilities, «with at least one day of classes taking place in this immersive environment at the aerodrome».
The UÉ Aerospace Engineering course had 20 students enrolled last academic year and a further 20 this year, with a further 25 places expected to be available in the second round of higher education applications, and the results are due to be announced later this month.
Present at the ceremony, the Secretary of State for Science and Innovation, Helena Canhão, emphasised that space and aeronautics «are increasingly important sectors on various levels», including sovereignty, industry and skills development.
For his part, the Mayor of Évora, Carlos Zorrinho, said the city's commitment to developing the aerospace and aeronautics sectors «needs a new impetus» and referred to the «very high demand for industries linked to security and defence».
SM/ADB // ADB.
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