Definition
The title of an instrument approach procedure that uses a VOR (VHF Omnidirectional Range) station combined with DME (Distance Measuring Equipment) to guide an aircraft to Runway 31 of the airport for which the chart is published. The VOR provides bearing information from the station, and the DME provides slant-range distance to or from it. Together they let the pilot fly a defined lateral path and identify fixes by distance, descending in steps to a published minimum altitude from which the runway can be sighted and a landing made.
Plain English
It is the name of a specific instrument approach to Runway 31 that the pilot flies using a VOR radio navigation station for direction and DME for distance from that station.
Context Anchor
Seen as the title at the top of an instrument approach chart.
Derivation
VOR stands for VHF Omnidirectional Range, a ground-based radio beacon that transmits bearing information in every direction. DME stands for Distance Measuring Equipment, which measures the aircraft's distance from a paired ground station. RWY is the standard abbreviation for runway, and 31 refers to the runway whose magnetic heading is roughly 310 degrees. Knowing what each piece stands for makes the chart title self-explanatory: the navigation aids used, and the runway served.
Why Pilots Care
It supplies a reliable ground-based path to the runway when visual references are unavailable, allowing continued flight under instrument conditions.
Intuition Check
Do not read VOR/DME as “VOR or DME.” In this chart title, it means the approach uses VOR guidance together with DME distance information.
Example Sentence 1
ATC issued the clearance, 'November Three Four Alpha, cleared for the VOR/DME RWY 31 approach.'
Example Sentence 2
Because the VOR/DME RWY 31 had no electronic glide slope, the crew planned a higher descent rate once inside the final approach fix.