17:45, 23 July 2025 – The Caltanissetta guyed antenna tower, standing 286 metres tall, became the eleventh Rai Way guyed mast from the decommissioned Medium Wave radio network to be dismantled.

Not the first former medium-wave tower to fall, but perhaps the most beloved — and certainly the most imposing.

Designed in 1949 and built using recycled post-war armament steel, the tower transmitted Rai radio signals across the Mediterranean on long and medium waves from 1951 to 2013. The structure consisted of a lattice steel tower stabilised by eight interlaced guy wires, anchored to the ground and supported by two structural ceramic insulators, each weighing 1.6 tonnes.

A source of pride for the engineers and workers who built it — and a part of the history of both Rai and Rai Way, as well as the local community — it was an extraordinary feat of civil engineering: nearly 300 metres in height with a base measuring just 4 by 4 metres.

Recognised until 1965 as the tallest tower in Europe, it was nonetheless, like any structural or architectural element, subject to a finite service life. According to Italy’s Technical Standards for Construction (NTC 2018) and in the specific case of constructions with ordinary performance levels, the service life — “the period during which the building or its components maintain performance levels equal to or above acceptable limits” — is clearly defined. For ordinary-performance structures, such as the Caltanissetta guyed tower, that limit is 50 years.

The first significant signs of structural distress appeared in 2017, when one of the load-bearing element — the base ceramic insulator — cracked. This safety incident provided Rai Way with an opportunity to conduct a comprehensive structural assessment to verify the tower’s stability in line with current safety regulations. The outcome of the static analysis was negative, leading to further feasibility studies on potential reinforcement works. However, these studies confirmed that upgrading the structure was not operationally feasible, as the required interventions would have exposed workers to unacceptable safety risks.

In 2024, a technical-scientific assessment commissioned by Rai Way and carried out by the Politecnico di Milano, under the supervision of Engineer Ardito, confirmed severe structural wear, identifying demolition as the only viable solution to ensure area safety.

The demolition project, designed by Engineer Draghi and executed by I.T.C. Due S.r.l., aimed to minimise high-altitude operations and thereby reduce workers’ exposure to risk. Operators selected for the task were among the most skilled and experienced in the field.

Rai Way carried out a controlled collapse, a technique designed to ensure the tower fell strictly within the boundaries of the transmission centre’s grounds. A winch cable was anchored approximately 150 metres from the tower. After releasing the tensioned guy wires, a hinge mechanism was created to make the structure fold onto itself, collapsing safely within Rai Way’s property. The execution was impeccable — technically perfect, spectacular in scale, and deeply moving for what it represented. Certainly a remarkable engineering operation that will remain long in the memory of all who witnessed it.

TGR Sicily – Rai Antenna Demolished After 74 Years The video of the demolition

Safety was the top priority — and one of the founding values of Rai Way’s corporate culture. The demolition of the Sant’Anna transmission tower removed the risk that a potential collapse could have posed to residents living within its possible fall radius. It was a planned, inevitable and necessary intervention, made all the more urgent by the condition of the structure and its proximity to residential buildings.