I haven't seen a magnetic sensing boom on anything other than a P-3C
This is the airplane that is doing the survey:
I suppose that they don't call it a "magnetic anomaly detector" and that they can't drop a torpedo.
It’s A Hotel, Not An Emergency Dispatch
1 hour ago
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Sure looks like a "C" registration, or Canadian (mostly). There's a Canadian outfit, Geotech (Geotech dot ca) that does help and fixed wing surveys, including magnetic. If you have the tail number, we can figure the company.
Terraquest is th name over the windows. C-GXKS.
C-GXKS is a Piper Navajo PA-31-325 mfg. S/N 31-7512038
Last flight from Rapid City SD to Farmington MO was mid-December. Presuming Terraquest is doing this for hire and not pro bono they are supposed to have a foreign aircraft permit issued by the U.S. DOT, which they don't have. The addition of that MAD boom should be significant from a weight and balance point of view at least, yet the Transport Canada records show it is type certified on the basis of the U.S type certification A20SO that hasn't changed in years. CAR Stds 507.02(1) and 507.03(3) are referenced but I'm not familiar with the Canadian regulations. No supplemental type certificate is shown in the Canadian records and the airplane didn't have a MAD boom when it left the factory in Lock Haven or I'd wager when it entered Canada and flew for an air service and then a church organization before Terraquest got it. Hmmmmmmm.
Looks like Missouri is looking to roll over and stick it's butt in the air for the oil and gas companies. The Missouri Geological Survey has a "State Oil and Gas Council" that's been meeting over at least the last year to determine the fees for oil and gas companies (minutes seem to go back as far as 2009). Next meeting in a couple of weeks in Rolla. Looks likely they contracted with Terraquest (Canadian exploration firm that does magnetic gradient surveys for locating areas of interest for drilling/mining firms) to get the data to interest firms. Since there is a buttload of drilling to the northeast in southern Illinois, it's likely they are betting that similar geological formations underlie at least northeastern and eastern Missouri and might be good for leasing.
The MAD gear shouldn't be too heavy, but that's certainly not within the production certificate boundaries.
This isn't the best time for negotiating rights, pricewise, but we should all realize that every bit of extractable energy will be extracted, sooner or later. The best we can do is have it done as safely and economically as possible, and make the stuff last as long as possible.
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