Beyond Industry, Centered on People
Designing a City for Future Generations
"A city grows through industry, but it is completed by people."
The aerospace complex city envisioned by Sacheon Mayor Park Dongsik is not a mere expansion of an industrial complex. The future of Sacheon he imagines is Korea's first "Aerospace Complex City," where the economy, education, and living conditions are organically connected around aerospace. This is not simply about building factories; it is a plan to redesign the very structure of the city so that future generations can live there and the world will pay attention to it.
◆ Establishing the central axis of Korea's aerospace industry
Sacheon is already a city with deep roots in the aviation industry. Building on this foundation, Mayor Park Dongsik is envisioning a full-cycle aerospace industrial ecosystem that extends beyond aircraft to drones, satellites, and space launch vehicles. A structure in which research and development, manufacturing, testing, certification, and commercialization are all carried out within a single city is the key to transforming Sacheon from a "production base" into a "strategic hub." In this city, the aerospace industry will not be the exclusive domain of specific companies, but will take shape as a concentrated cluster where small and medium-sized enterprises, startups, and research institutes grow together. This is the point at which Sacheon leaps from being an "aviation city" to becoming the "capital of aerospace."
◆ A city young people do not leave, a city where talent gathers
The sustainability of industry ultimately depends on people.
Mayor Park Dongsik's aerospace complex city is premised on a structure in which young people can stay, learn, and take on challenges. Aerospace-specialized educational institutions and research facilities, along with a field-oriented talent training system, aim to transform Sacheon from a "city you leave to study and leave again to find a job" into a "city where you learn in Sacheon and grow in Sacheon." This is not a simple population inflow policy, but a strategy to fundamentally change the competitiveness of the city.
◆ Beyond an industrial city, toward a livable future city
The aerospace complex city is not a city lined only with factories.
Its core axis is a residential smart city where housing, education, culture, healthcare, and transportation are in balance. A city where advanced industries, eco-friendly spaces, and safe living infrastructure are harmonized functions not just as a place where workers stay, but as a space where families settle down and plan their lives. Mayor Park Dongsik's vision of Sacheon is not a "city where it is hard to live even if there are jobs," but a "city where work and life coexist."
◆ An international aerospace city connected to the world
Sacheon's stage will not be confined to Korea.
Through international exhibitions, cooperation with global companies, and technology exchanges, Sacheon aims to establish itself as one pillar of the global aerospace industry network. A city where the name "Sacheon" is clearly imprinted on the global aerospace map beyond Korea: that is the ultimate goal of Sacheon's aerospace complex city.
◆ Why the goal is to become the "Toulouse of Asia"
There is a clear reason why Toulouse in France is mentioned as the model for the aerospace complex city that Sacheon is pursuing. Toulouse is not just a city where aircraft factories are clustered; it is a global benchmark city where the aerospace industry defines the city's identity, economy, education, and even its way of life. Centered on Airbus, Toulouse has a complete industrial ecosystem that spans aircraft manufacturing, research and development, testing and certification, parts supply, and talent cultivation. Universities, research institutes, and companies are organically connected, and the aerospace industry has gone beyond job creation to become the city's brand itself. This is precisely what Sacheon is focusing on.
◆ A strategy to emulate the "urban structure"
The "Toulouse of Asia" that Sacheon Mayor Park Dongsik speaks of is not limited to attracting a particular company. The goal Sacheon is drawing is a clear transformation of the urban structure in terms of industry (a full-cycle aerospace industrial cluster encompassing aircraft, drones, satellites, and space launch vehicles), education (building specialized education and research systems directly linked to industrial demand), settlement (a living-based city where researchers, workers, and their families can settle together), and brand (a clear urban identity in which Sacheon is recognized as synonymous with aerospace).
If Toulouse is a city where "the aerospace industry is the city itself," Sacheon intends to realize in Asia a structure in which "aerospace leads the future of the city."
◆ Conditions unique to Sacheon, an approach unique to Sacheon
Sacheon is already regarded as the optimal location in Korea to realistically expand the Toulouse model, given that it is a city with an existing aviation industry base and substantial production capabilities. If the Korea Aerospace Administration, research institutions, companies, and talent are concentrated there, Sacheon can leap beyond being a local industrial city to become a strategic hub city connecting Asia's aerospace industry. If Toulouse is the center of European aerospace, Sacheon will become a new axis reshaping the aerospace landscape of Asia.
◆ Administration that designs the future of the city
The aerospace complex city envisioned by Sacheon Mayor Park Dongsik is not a project aimed at short-term results. It is a long-term strategy to preemptively prepare a sustainable urban structure for 20 or 30 years into the future, a city vision that encompasses industrial policy, and a promise about the future that Sacheon is passing on to the next generation. Sacheon, which dreams of a city that grows through industry, is completed by people, and passes on competitiveness to future generations, now stands as a testbed for urban innovation in Korea, heading beyond the sky into space.
Mayor Park Dongsik said, "The aerospace complex city is not just a plan to grow industry. It is about creating a foundation where future generations of Sacheon can dream in this city and turn those dreams into reality. I will make sure to complete Sacheon as the center of Korea's aerospace sector and as a city where everyone wants to live."
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