'Gate Guardian' Jaguar GR1 static aircraft to be removed and dismantled

The Jaguar GR1, also known as the Gate Guardian, which guarded RAF Gibraltar for the last 11 years is to be removed and dismantled later this month. 

It was in 2009 when it was decided Gibraltar would get a new 'Gate Guardian'. All RAF stations around the world have what’s known as a ‘Gate Guardian’: a withdrawn piece of equipment, often an aircraft, mounted on a plinth and used as a static display symbolically guarding the entrance. Previously, the Vulcan Bomber fulilled this role. Jaguars were regular visitors to Gibraltar and in 2009, was chosen as the Gate Guardian.

The MOD says deterioration resulting from the high salt content in Gibraltar's atmosphere has led to the Jaguar becoming a hazard to health and to flight safety. The Joint Aircraft Recovery and Transportation Squadron based at MOD Boscombe Down, will arrive this month and carefully dismantle XX956, which will be loaded into containers for return to the UK, ending an era on the Rock.