COMMUTER PIC ADMITS TO IMPROPER APCH PROCS WHILE ARRIVING AT FLO; SC; AT NIGHT. SPD WAS TOO HIGH; HE LEFT HIS ASSIGNED ALT TO ESTABLISH THE LOC GS AND SUFFERED A POTENTIAL CONFLICT WITH ANOTHER ACFT. THE RPTR CITES ATIS INFO; FLO APCH CTL AND OTHER TFC AS FACTORS.

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WHILE MAKING A VISUAL APCH TO FLORENCE; SC; A SERIES OF EVENTS CAUSED ME TO MAKE AN ALTDEV AND A POSSIBLE NEAR MISS. THE EVENT STARTED WITH THE ATIS RPT CALLING FOR VISUALS TO RWY 19. APCHING FROM THE W WITH A 40 KT TAILWIND WE ARE USUALLY NOT HANDED OFF TO FLO APCH FROM SHAW APCH UNTIL 20-25 MI FROM FLO. UPON CHKING ON WITH FLO WE WERE TOLD TO EXPECT A STRAIGHT IN VISUAL TO RWY 9. TO THE BEST OF MY RECOLLECTION THE FOLLOWING XMISSIONS WERE MADE. FLO APCH ADVISED US TO 'DSND TO 5000 FT; TFC 12 O'CLOCK AND 10 MI 2200 FT NBOUND.' A FEW SECONDS LATER WE WERE CLRED TO 3200 FT AND INTERCEPT THE LOC. SHORTLY AFTER THAT WE HEAR A CESSNA CARDINAL BEING CLRED FOR A PRACTICE APCH TO RWY 9. AT THIS TIME WE ARE 10-12 MI FROM THE ARPT WITH A 290 KT GS; FRANTICALLY TRYING TO FIND THIS TFC AND SLOW. FLO APCH HADN'T TOLD US WE WERE FOLLOWING TFC; HAD NOT ADVISED US TO SLOW; DIDN'T TELL THE CESSNA TO KEEP THE SPD UP; AT THE SAME TIME THE CESSNA VOLUNTEERED TO BE TURNED OFF THE APCH. WE FINALLY GOT SLOWED TO OUR MINIMUM APCH SPD OF 125 KIAS AND I MISTAKENLY STARTED DOWN ON THE GS. THE CESSNA TFC WAS TURNED OFF THE APCH AND WE LANDED WITHOUT INCIDENT. WE NEVER SAW THE TFC BECAUSE WE WERE ABOVE LOOKING DOWN ON A BACKGROUND OF CITY LIGHTS. WE ALSO NEVER RECEIVED A TCASII ALERT. THE WHOLE INCIDENT COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED IF ATC WOULD HAVE ADVISED THAT WE WERE FOLLOWING TFC. CONTRIBUTING FACTORS WERE LONG DAY; RUNNING BEHIND SCHEDULE AND POOR CRM ON MY PART. I SHOULD HAVE CONTINUED TO PAY ATTN TO MY INSTS AND HAD THE FO LOOKING FOR TFC.