La Piste des Géants

The Piste des Géants is the new cultural complex in Toulouse – Montaudran, celebrating the birth of the great aeronautical destiny of Toulouse, the dreams and values of men who see further, larger, and which structures around its historic runway a new district dedicated to innovation.

The historic Aeropostale track is the backbone of this evolving neighbourhood

Partly listed as Historic Monuments, the 1.8 km runway saw the first Toulouse planes take off, those of Latécoère Airlines in 1918, the first aeronautical company in Toulouse, which became L’Aéropostale (Compagnie Générale Aéropostale) in 1927.

In 1933, the runway passed under the banner of Air France, which operated it to carry out the maintenance of its aircraft until 2003.

The adventure continues along the historic track of Toulouse-Montaudran, converted into an urban artery in the new district of innovation, Toulouse Aérospace.

Once a runway, the runway is now guiding the development of this new cultural, residential, commercial and technological district that is structured around it. It is open to all Toulouse residents and becomes the symbolic heritage object of the aeronautical destiny of Toulouse.

A historical cultural offer that goes beyond the framework and looks to the future

Around the track, a new cultural offer is offered to Toulouse. With the Jardins de La Ligne, L’Envol des Pionniers and the Halle de la Machine, the Piste des Géants offers an unprecedented reading of the aeronautical history of Toulouse. Here memory leads us to the future, the framework of values teaches us to go beyond our own framework, the past teaches us innovation, to the imagination that invites itself into reality.

The Gardens of the Line

On 2 hectares, on the edge of the historic track, the Jardins de la Ligne are a landscape evocation of the countries crossed by the pilots of the Latécoère Airlines and L’Aéropostale. Spain, Morocco, Mauritania, Senegal, Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina and Chile, these are the atmospheres of 3 continents that are reproduced through plant species, minerals, colors, water…

L’Envol des Pionniers

L’Envol des Pionniers is a legendary site, an essential heritage for Toulouse.

It is there, in Montaudran, on the site of L’Envol des Pionniers that the adventure of the Aéropostale started and took place all these years, here that more than 20 prototypes and models of aircraft capable of meeting each successive challenge were designed and assembled, from here they took off and here that this adventure is finally told to all audiences.

The Envol des Pionniers bears within its walls all the greatness of this adventure, it is still inhabited by the special spirit of these exceptional men and women. It is a place that shelters the soul of these pioneers.

These giants of the Line are the first giants of the track.

L’Envol des Pionniers also bears witness to the weight that the incredible adventure of L’Aéropostale represents in the history and identity of the city of Toulouse. If it is widely recognized that Toulouse is today the world capital of aeronautics, it must be realized that the first aircraft built in Toulouse were built in Montaudran in 1918. It is there, on the site of L’Envol des Pionniers that the civil aeronautics of Toulouse was driven. Since then, Toulouse has continued to design and build aircraft…

The aeronautical identity of Toulouse, so strong today and recognized worldwide, was born here.