Propagation model for estimating VOR bearing errors in the presence of windturbines - hybridation of parabolic equation with physical optics

Abstract : Windturbines near VOR ground station can yield significant bearing errors in the azimuth estimation. We propose a model that combines the parabolic equation and the physical optics approximation to predict these errors. It accounts for a possible hilly terrain, and a generic model of windturbines that includes dielectric blades. All the hypotheses made in the model are carefully justified by means of numerical simulations. In a realistic test case, this model is employed to compute the error caused by a complete windfarm located on a hilly terrain within acceptable computation time.