Passengers can be a Pain

This accident is a tragic example of passengers pushing the pilots to do something unsafe, and the pilot bending to the will of an overbearing boss.  I think that the contributing factors were the pressure put on the pilot by the passengers, and the pilot's choice to continue on the approach.  The weather also played a factor, as it seems that there was drifting snow showers that rapidly decreased visibility in certain areas.  I believe that the error chain started by planning a departure time that only allowed one hour of time between proposed arrival time and the landing curfew time.  It then continued when the pilots continued to allow themselves to be pressured.  The next link was the pilots decision to shoot the approach when other business jets had to initiate missed approaches.  The one part that doesn't really make sense is the choice to allow a passenger into the jump seat.  Although the passenger probably didn't verbally push the pilots to continue the approach, the presence of the passenger probably provided a reminder of how angry the boss would be.  The pilots probably should have started out the flight by telling the passengers that there was a really good chance they would need to divert because of their late departure time and the weather in Aspen.  They also should have been prepared to initiate a missed approach after the jets in front of them needed to.  One of the biggest choices they should have made would have been to stay on the approach path and not try to shoot a contact approach to an airport they were unfamiliar with at night.  I think that I would try to convince the passengers of the reality that we would probably need to go to Rifle, Colorado.  No matter how much the passenger pushed, I would not try to do something unsafe.  At the end of the day, I think that any company would understand my choice.  And even if I lost my job because of the boss' insistence, I think that it would be easy to explain to a future employer.  If they were a company that legitimately placed safety above all else, they would understand my decision and not hold it against me.

Single Pilot IFR

Right now, I would not even think about flying single pilot IFR.  It has been about 15 months since I got my IFR rating, and I haven't gotten much training since then.  If I spent more time doing some training to get my competency back, I would be more willing to try single pilot IFR.  After reading the article, I believe that flying single pilot IFR is more about planning and staying ahead of the aircraft than actually flying.  I think that one of the most important tips I picked up from the article is to look at the weather trends for about a week in advance before the trip.  This makes a lot of sense.  For example, if you are flying to the California coast IFR, you would want to watch the weather each day to see when the evening fog comes in.  If you have this in mind, you can plan on when to depart so that you avoid shooting an approach into low visibility conditions.  Overall I think that flying single pilot IFR is not necessarily a dangerous thing.  If the pilot stays competent, plans ahead and is prepared, then he will be able to safely complete even the most difficult flight in IFR.

Electrical Fires

Reading the AOPA article on what to do in the even of an electrical fire was pretty eye opening.  Most of the advice I have picked up from the hangar talk is that it is okay to reset a circuit breaker no matter what, but you have to make sure that you keep an eye on it.  The article, on the other hand, seems to say that you should not reset a circuit breaker, unless it is for a circuit that is essential for flight.  A short circuit is where the wiring is damaged and current is allowed to flow into another system or onto a surface such as the fuselage.  This is bad because it can cause too much current to run through the wires, resulting in damaged wiring or even an electrical fire.  Our procedure in the Seminole is similar to what the article talked about because it advises to immediately turn off the battery master.  It also says to leave all non-essential circuits off, and to test each essential circuit before operating it.  Both the article and the PIM are clear in stating that you should land as soon as practical to fix the problem.  In the future I know that I will have to fly the airplane first and foremost.  I imagine that an electrical fire is pretty distracting, so it will be really important to ensure that I keep flying.  I also now know that I shouldn't reset a circuit breaker unless it is very essential for the flight to continue, and even then I should ensure that it isn't the cause of the problem.