Optimal strategy of DME beacon distrbution for DME/DME area navigation

Distance measuring equipment (DME) is important ground based navigation system for implementation of area navigation (RNAV), and its positioning accuracy is directly related to geometric dilution of precision (GDOP). For the distribution of three DME beacons, this paper establishes the GDOP algorithm model based on DME/DME RNAV, the GDOP calculation is deduced, and the relation between GDOP and DME ground station distribution is given. The affection of the geometric configuration and the baseline length of DME stations, and of the aircraft height on GDOP values are studied and simulated by MATLAB. The optimal methods of DME beacon distribution for DME/DME RNAV are proposed in this paper, and all these results will provide theoretical guidance for implementation of DME/DME RNAV in China.