A UNIC mini crane battled against the elements and mischievous monkeys on top of The Rock of Gibraltar in a recent episode of Channel 5 TV documentary Gibraltar: Britain In The Sun.

A UNIC URW-376 mini crane was hired to help a team of specialist RAF riggers rebuild the 24 year old radar dome at the summit of Gibraltar’s famous Rock. Standing 1400 feet above sea level, the dome protects radar antennas which are used to guide aircraft at Gibraltar International Airport.

It was a race against time to get the old dome dismantled and the new panels installed as the radar had to be turned off during the operation. The radar is essential for guiding aircraft during bad weather conditions and any signs of change meant aircraft would have to be diverted elsewhere to land.

Working in this remote location, the 2.9 tonne capacity UNIC spider crane lifted each of the new 2 metre wide panels (weighing 125kg) into position while the installation team bolted them together. One of The Rock’s monkey inhabitants also had its moment in the spotlight during the TV episode, stealing a rigger’s pair of gloves and doing its business on a tool box!

Some dramatic 74 km/h gales at the summit may have stopped the job in its tracks for a while, but the mini crane soon made up for lost time and was able to help the riggers finish the job.

Watch the UNIC crane in action on The Rock of Gibraltar in our latest Vimeo clip.

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