Fernando Gallego Herrera was a pioneer in engineering, a man whose life bridged invention, construction innovation, and adventurous exploration. He hailed from a Zamoran family rooted in the once flourishing town of Anta de Tera, a place later submerged by the Valparaíso reservoir in the late 1980s. Yet, his career unfolded across major hydraulic structures around the world, from the Panama Canal to the Aswan Dam. The breadth of his work extended far beyond these emblematic projects, a point highlighted by Zamora Higher Polytechnic School professor Evelio Teijón as he shared details of the many structures this progress left in history. This is part of the narrative presented at the Zamora III History Congress.
Born in Villoria, Salamanca in 1901 and passing away in Pamplona in 1973, Gallego Herrera descended from a family of textile merchants that settled in Salamanca. His studies spanned Madrid, and his first major professional challenge arrived even before finishing studies: a mission to rescue an underground metro project that would later become a key feature of the sixth line in Barcelona.
The decline that followed damaged some works, all of which were submerged. This echoed challenges faced today in tunneling projects, such as those during the AVE lines between León and Asturias. Gallego Herrera proposed a drainage innovation of his era that allowed urban centers to advance despite water pressures.
Among his most striking ideas was the ambitious invention introduced in 1928: a system of floating tunnels, giant semi buried pipes intended to link Spain with Spain across the Strait of Gibraltar. Documentation of this groundbreaking concept, which never came to fruition, has been preserved at the Zamora Higher Polytechnic School. Teijón has recalled Gallego Herrera as a figure akin to Jules Verne or a modern Indiana Jones for engineering enthusiasts.
This unique tunnel concept, meant to connect two continents, initially lacked royal backing from King Alfonso. Yet similar floating tunnel ideas would later appear in other regions, prompting a reassessment of this visionary project as history resurfaced in archives. These notes show how curiosity and risk sometimes outpaced immediate political support, tempering but not extinguishing the idea.
Teijón also notes the inventor’s other remarkable experiments, including three prototypes known as Aerogenio. These were lightweight aircraft powered by compressed air engines, and the records suggest that the early flights occurred, though some trials were sabotaged to discredit the idea of floating tunnels anchored by steel cables evocative of landmarks like the Golden Gate. Gallego Herrera also contributed to the construction of the Martín Gil viaduct in Zamora on the line to Galicia and helped patent a new system for arch-based bridge construction using innovative techniques.
His life, described as very unique and extraordinary by Evelio Teijón, included international chapters as well. He is remembered as a pioneer who traveled widely, with adventures that spanned continents and eras, contributing to major projects and theoretical breakthroughs alike. The narrative positions him among the notable engineers whose pursuits extended beyond national borders, shaping conversations about infrastructure on a global stage. The evidence of these travels and experiments remains a testament to his enduring influence on engineering and exploration.