VOR performance is highly sensitive to environmental influences such as terrain, buildings, and moving obstacles. While ground measurements are essential for maintenance, they often fail to capture the true signal-in-space behaviour experienced by aircraft.

Traditionally, these effects can only be assessed through flight inspection campaigns. The NavAidDrone introduces a new approach by enabling frequent, flexible airborne measurements, allowing ANSPs to better understand, monitor, and maintain VOR performance between flight inspections.

Advanced Drone-Based VOR Measurement Capabilities

The NavAidDrone can be extended to perform VOR measurements through a dedicated software module, without any modification to the hardware platform.

Using flexible flight patterns such as short radials and orbit flights close to the facility, the system enables the assessment of bearing accuracy in the vicinity of the VOR.

Beyond standard bearing error evaluation, the NavAidDrone features advanced signal processing capabilities, allowing the separation and analysis of individual VOR signal components. This provides deeper insight into:

• Signal distortions caused by site effects
• Differences between CVOR and DVOR behaviour
• Stability and integrity of the radiated signal

These capabilities support a more detailed technical understanding of VOR performance and enable early detection of issues before they become critical in flight inspection.