 The investigation revealed that ATC cleared the flight to " the VOR approach " , without actually specifying which specific VOR approach procedure was to be used , possibly leaving it to the flight crew 's discretion . According to the radio communication transcript , the flight crew did not inquire as to which specific approach was in effect . There were two published VOR approaches at the time , one from the north and one from the south . The northern approach , called " VOR / DME 19 " , was not legally available to the crew under these circumstances , as Mohawk company policy prohibited reliance on DME as a primary navigational instrument . The other VOR approach , called " VOR 1 " , was the only one legally available to the flight , and would have required descending while approaching the airport from the south during the final approach segment , followed by a " circle to land " maneuver , landing to the south on runway 19 . 
