Abstract: The natural gas gathering and transportation system involves gas wells, pipelines, and gathering and transportation stations, characterized by wide spatial distribution and complex landforms. In recent years, the increasing number of natural gas wells, coupled with gathering and transportation pipelines with extended service life, third-party damage and natural disasters, has led to frequent and widespread natural gas leakage incidents. Traditional manual inspection is constrained by such factors as long distance, wide coverage and poor accessibility of gathering and transportation pipelines, preventing timely detection and response to anomalies. Through practical applications of unmanned aerial vehicle-mounted laser methane detectors in the inspection, oil and gas leakage monitoring, and emergency response command within natural gas gathering and transportation systems and supported by a case study from a company, this paper elaborates on how this technology enables timely detection and effective resolution of gas leakage in natural gas wells, pipelines, and gathering and transportation stations, thereby providing strong support for the safe and stable operation of natural gas gathering and transportation systems.

Key words: unmanned aerial vehicles, laser methane detection, natural gas, gathering and transportation system, leakage monitoring