PA28 CHEROKEE ON VFR FLT WAS HAVING COM PROB AND USING A PORTABLE UNIT AS A BACKUP. WX CONDITIONS WERE NOT AS FORECAST AND USING COM WITH ACR ELECTED TO LAND SWF. UNABLE TO MAKE CONTACT WITH TWR AND SAW BUSINESS JET DEPARTING RWY 9; 1000 FT BELOW. LAND RWY 9 AND TWR ADVISED TO FOLLOW THE COURTESY CAR AND CALL THE TWR. JET FILED NMAC RPT.

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A BUSINESS ASSOCIATE AND I LEFT MORRISVILLE ARPT; VT; AT XA00 AM FOR ESSEX COUNTY ARPT; NJ. PRIOR TO TKOF; I CHKED WITH BURLINGTON; VT; FSS; WX WAS RPTED TO BE CLR; 20 MI VISIBILITY; NO CLOUDS BELOW 12000 FT; FOG TO BURN OFF BY XB00 AM IN THE NEW YORK-NEW JERSEY AREA. AFTER TKOF; I CLBED TO 7500 FT; CONTACTED BURLINGTON APCH AND REQUESTED FLT FOLLOWING FOR A VFR FLT TO ESSEX COUNTY ARPT. 60 MI S OF BURLINGTON I WAS ADVISED BY BURLINGTON APCH THAT BOSTON LOW ALT RADAR WAS OUT AND THAT I WOULD BE ABLE TO PICK UP ALBANY APCH S OF GLENS FALLS ARPT; NY. BTWN GLENS FALLS AND ALBANY; NY; I LOST THE XMITTER SIDE OF MY MAIN RADIO. I HAD A HAND-HELD ON BOARD AND ATTEMPTED TO CONTACT ALBANY APCH; BUT WAS UNABLE TO REACH THEM UNTIL I WAS WITHIN 5 MI OF THE ARPT. UPON LEAVING THE ALBANY AREA; I WAS ADVISED BY ALBANY APCH TO SWITCH TO ZNY AND THEY GAVE ME THE CORRECT FREQ. I TUNED IN ZNY; BUT WAS UNABLE TO REACH THEM. I WAS ABLE TO HEAR ALL XMISSIONS ON THE RECEIVING SIDE OF THE MAIN RADIO LOUD AND CLR. AT APPROX 70 MI FROM THE ESSEX COUNTY ARPT; I WAS SEEING A CLOUD BANK AT ABOUT 3000 FT BROKEN AT THIS TIME. AS I CONTINUED S; THE BANK APPEARED TO GET THICKER AND I DECIDED TO DSND BELOW THE CLOUDS AND WAS ABLE TO MAINTAIN VFR. DURING ALL THIS; I WAS ATTEMPTING TO CONTACT ZNY. AT THIS POINT I COULD HEAR THEM VERY FAINTLY; AND THEY COULD NOT HEAR ME AT ALL. SHORTLY AFTER THIS POINT; I WAS CONTACTED BY AN ACR JET REQUESTING MY ALT AND LOCATION; WHETHER OR NOT I WAS IN VFR WX AND MY INTENTIONS. THEY WERE TO FORWARD THIS INFO TO ZNY; WHO WAS UNABLE TO PICK UP MY XPONDER. I WAS ABLE TO XMIT TO THE ACR AND INFORMED THEM THAT I WAS IN VFR CONDITIONS AT 2500 FT AND APPROX 56 MI FROM ESSEX COUNTY ARPT AND EXPECTED TO CONTINUE ON TO MY DEST. AS I CONTINUED S; I FELT THE WX WAS DETERIORATING AND DECIDED TO LAND. I RADIOED THE ACR ACR PLT AND ASKED HIM TO ADVISE ZNY I WAS GOING TO LAND AT THE NEAREST ARPT. MY NEXT COM WAS FROM ACR FLT XYZ; AND ANOTHER 3 WAY CONVERSATION TOOK PLACE TO DETERMINE MY ALT; LOCATION AND NEAREST ARPT. IT WAS DETERMINED THAT I WAS CLOSEST TO STEWART ARPT. I MADE A R HAND TURN TOWARDS THE ARPT AND LOCATED THE TWR FREQ ON MY SECTIONAL MAP. I WAS AT 2500 FT WITH 3-4 MI VISIBILITY AND MIST. I WAS UNABLE TO MAKE RADIO CONTACT WITH STEWART ARPT; AND HAD NOT YET IDENTED THE ARPT ON THE GND. AT APPROX 1 MI FROM THE ARPT; I WAS ABLE TO IDENT STEWART ARPT. ONLY A MOMENT AFTER LOCATING THE ARPT I SAW A BUSINESS JET CLBING OUT FROM STEWART ON RWY 9. I WAS LOOKING DOWN AT HIM; SO I ESTIMATE HIS ALT AS 1500 FT OR APPROX 1000 FT BELOW ME. I IMMEDIATELY MADE A R TURN AND SAW THE JET ALSO TURN TO HIS R. THAT WAS THE LAST TIME I SAW HIM. MY R HAND TURN HAD PUT ME ON A L DOWNWIND TO RWY 9. I WAS STILL UNABLE TO REACH THE TWR AT STEWART. I SAW NO TFC; SO I CONTINUED TO TURN BASE AND THEN FINAL TO RWY 9; AND LANDED. I ROLLED OUT ONTO THE FIRST TXWY. AT THAT TIME; I WAS CONTACTED FOR THE FIRST TIME BY THE TWR AND INFORMED THAT A COURTESY CAR WAS GOING TO MEET ME AND I WAS TO FOLLOW THE CAR TO THE FBO AND CALL THE TWR; WHICH I DID. MY ASSOCIATE AND I LEFT FOR OUR BUSINESS MEETING AND RETURNED TO THE ARPT ON FEB/XC/97; TO GO BACK TO VT. AS WE WERE ENTERING THE PLANE TO LEAVE I WAS APCHED BY THE NEW YORK STATE POLICE AND WAS ASKED TO FILE A RPT ON THE INCIDENT ON FEB/XA/97; BECAUSE THE PLT OF THE BUSINESS JET WAS FILING A NEAR MISS RPT. I WOULD LIKE TO POINT OUT HERE THAT MY ASSOCIATE WILL VERIFY THAT I WAS ON THE CORRECT FREQ FOR STEWART ARPT ON DOWNWIND TO RWY 9 AND THAT THERE WAS NO FREQ CHANGE MADE FOR THE TWR TO CONTACT US ON THE TXWY. I QUESTION WHETHER THERE WAS ANYONE IN THE TWR AT THIS TIME. IN CLOSING; MY SUGGESTION IS THAT EMER PROCS BE REVIEWED AT BIANNUAL REVIEW; SINCE THEY ARE VERY SELDOM USED; AT LEAST BY YOURS TRULY; AND ARE NOT AN AUTOMATIC RESPONSE WHEN UNDER PRESSURE. SINCE THIS INCIDENT; I HAVE REVIEWED THE AIRSPACE AND EMER PROCS IN THE AIRMAN'S INFO MANUAL.