when I was learning to fly, the instructor told me this:
At night in a single engine airplane, if you lose power, and can not maintain altitude, wait until you are about 100 or so feet AGL then turn your landing light on, if you like what you see, .. leave it on, if you don't like what you see, turn it off.
It is rare that I will fly single engine at night, I will almost never fly night IFR SE. Even with IMC days I need at least 500-800ft ceilings the entire route in a single.. otherwise I drive. I want to be sure when I drop out the bottom of the clouds, I have some chance at picking a landing spot.
At night in a single engine airplane, if you lose power, and can not maintain altitude, wait until you are about 100 or so feet AGL then turn your landing light on, if you like what you see, .. leave it on, if you don't like what you see, turn it off.
It is rare that I will fly single engine at night, I will almost never fly night IFR SE. Even with IMC days I need at least 500-800ft ceilings the entire route in a single.. otherwise I drive. I want to be sure when I drop out the bottom of the clouds, I have some chance at picking a landing spot.