Total electrical failure - (hypothetical)

"Michael" wrote in message
oups.com...
C J Campbell wrote:
This comes very close to the category of a non-critical emergency,
defined
as an emergency where, no matter what you do, you are going to die.

That's a hell of a defeatist attitude, and demonstrably wrong since
people HAVE survived exactly this situation.


Yes, and people have survived jumping out of the plane without a parachute
at 20,000 feet, too. But the odds are against it. Personally, I think the
way you deal with an electrical failure in IMC with no GPS or handheld radio
is that you avoid putting yourself in a situation where that can happen.

I would hate to have to rely on a handheld GPS in such an emergency,
though
of course it would be welcome as better than nothing.

Actually, it is DRAMATICALLY better than nothing. It is more accurate,
more precise, and more reliable than any NDB and most VOR's.

NDB, yes. VOR, highly questionable.


The ability to shoot an overlay using a handheld GPS should be part of
the repertoire of any instrument pilot. If you don't know how, ask
your instructor to show you.

I would agree with that.


Newer single engine aircraft with glass cockpits have backup
instruments and
some sort of backup electrical system, even if it is only certified
for 30
minutes.

That's because they lack vacuum

Nonsense. Most of them have backup vacuum instruments and even have dual
vacuum pumps, which older airplanes lack.


They also have terrain displays so that you have at least a small
chance of descending out of the clouds without killing yourself.

Terrain displays are available on the newer high-end handheld GPS
units.

True, mine has that.


Beyond that, I
would say that you are taking a serious risk if you insist on flying
a
single engine piston airplane in actual IMC beyond, say, punching
through a
thin layer.

That must be why self-flown business flights, which do this routinely,
are so much more dangerous than personal flights, which rarely do this.
Oh, wait...

In fact, self-flown business flights do not do this routinely, especially in
single engine piston aircraft. They are less dangerous than personal flights
because the pilots are better trained, the planes are better equipped, and
they are not going to kill themselves with low level VFR maneuvers, which is
the biggest killer of GA pilots.