Hilton wrote:

I fly at night, I fly IMC, I never fly IMC at night, and definitely not over
hills in a single engine with a 1956 172 (assuming it did not have the newer
6-pack configuration). You're welcome to say I'm too conservative, but
there you go. I know of a very experienced test pilot, Reno Race racer who
will not fly single-engine at night period, even in perfect VMC conditions.

I also know many who would never go up "in any of those little planes" and
would prefer to sit on their couch all day long hiding from any perceived
risk the world may hand out.

This is certainly not meant to be a slam on your personal limits. My point
is simply that it is a matter of perspective and a mitigation of the risks
involved.

I have had discussions with high-time corporate pilots who have had the
fortune to build their careers behind the yoke of a state-of-the-art, glass
cockpit corporate jet. These pilots also will not fly single engine IFR,
day or night.

How much of this rejection is based on the real risk versus how much is
based on emotion? It is certainly conceivable to me that a pilot with
many thousands of hours in a very well equipped aircraft may have forgotten
how to mitigate the risks of night IMC because they haven't done so in many
years. Thus, they shun night IMC out of emotion, rather than logic.

--
Peter