Mont-de-Marsan explained

Mont-de-Marsan
Commune Status:	Prefecture and commune
Image Coat Of Arms:	Blason mont-de-marsan.svg
Arrondissement:	Mont-de-Marsan
Canton:	Mont-de-Marsan-1 and 2
Insee:	40192
Postal Code:	40000
Mayor:	Charles Dayot^[1]
Term:	2020 - 2026
Intercommunality:	Mont-de-Marsan Agglomération
Coordinates:	43.89°N -0.5°W
Elevation M:	63
Elevation Min M:	23
Elevation Max M:	97
Area Km2:	36.88

Mont-de-Marsan (in French pronounced as /mɔ̃ də maʁsɑ̃/; Occitan: Lo Mont de Marçan^[2]) is a commune and capital of the Landes department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France.^[3]

Military installations

The French Air and Space Force operates the Constantin Rozanoff Mont-de-Marsan Air Base about 2 kilometres north of the town. The base includes CEAM (the French air force military experimentation and trials organisation), an air defense radar command reporting centre and an air defence control training site. Mont-de-Marsan Air Base was formerly home to France's first operational squadron of nuclear bombers, the Dassault Mirage IVA.

Sights

The Donjon Lacataye is the keep of a 14th-century castle
Despiau-Wlérick Museum (1930s sculpture by two local artists)
Dubalen Museum
Marechal Foch's equestrian statue

Culture

Stade Montois Club Omnisports is the city's main sports club: Stade Montois rugby and Stade Montois football are especially well-known. The city has around 9,000 sports licensees, which represents nearly 30% of its total population.

Two historic punk rock music festivals were held in Mont-de-Marsan's bullring in 1976 and 1977.

The Festival Arte Flamenco international festival was established 1989 in Mont-de-Marsan by the council of the Landes department and is the largest Flamenco festival outside of Spain.

Economy

Overall, three sectors dominate the economic activity of Mont-de-Marsan:

The agri-food sector: centered around poultry (duck, chicken, foie gras), and primarily corn, with major companies based here (Delpeyrat, Maïsadour…);
The forestry sector: several companies contribute to the activities of the Industries and Future Maritime Pine competitiveness cluster;
The Military Aeronautical Experimentation Center: the Mont-de-Marsan Air Base (BA 118) is one of the main operational bases for the French Air Force.

Personalities

Joël Bats, association football goalkeeper (1957 –)
Patrick Biancone, horse racing trainer, (1952 –)
Pierre Bosquet, Marshal of France, (1810–1861)
Thomas Castaignède, rugby union footballer, (1975 –)
Charles Despiau, sculptor, (1874–1946)
Pierre Gensous, trade unionist, (1925–2017)
Alain Juppé, politician and former Prime Minister of France, (1945 –)
Gaëtan Laborde, association football player, (1994 -)
Romain Larrieu, association football goalkeeper (1976 –)
Louis-Anselme Longa, painter, (1809–1869)
Abdoulaye Loum, basketball player
Jean van de Velde, golfer, (1966 –)
Fabien Vehlmann, comics writer, (1972 –)
Geneviève Darrieussecq, the mayor of Mont-de-Marsan (2008–2017) and since 2017 Secretary of State to the Minister of the Armed Forces, (1956 –)