STUDENT PLT OF A C152; ON FIRST SOLO XCOUNTRY FLT; LOST ALL ELECTRICAL PWR; INCLUDING COM AND VOR RADIOS; AND LANDED AT A TWR CTLED ARPT WITHOUT AUTH SINCE HE WAS NOT FAMILIAR WITH TWR CTL LIGHT SIGNALS.

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I BEGAN MY FIRST XCOUNTRY SOLO FLT AS A STUDENT PLT THE MORNING OF APR/THU/98; WITH SLIGHTLY LESS THAN IDEAL WX CONDITIONS; BUT NOTHING THAT SHOULD CAUSE TROUBLE. THE PLAN WAS TO FLY VFR IN THE FLT SCHOOL'S C152 FROM N99 TO W29; AND THEN SWING AROUND TO ILG FOR 3 LNDGS IN CLASS D CTLED AIRSPACE; AND THEN RETURN HOME TO BRANDYWINE. I WAS MORE THAN ADEQUATELY TRAINED AND PREPARED FOR THE SOLO; AND WAS QUITE COMFORTABLE WITH THE IDEA. SHORTLY AFTER LEAVING BRANDYWINE; THE LOW VOLTAGE LIGHT CAME ON; AND I NOTICED A VERY SLIGHT NEGATIVE CHARGE READING; INDICATING CURRENT BEING DRAWN FROM THE BATTERY. I WASN'T WORRIED; I HAD BEEN ASSURED MANY TIMES THAT THE ELECTRICAL SYS OF A C152 WAS ENTIRELY SEPARATE FROM THE ENG; AND ON MY LAST FLT IN THE SAME AIRPLANE MY INSTRUCTOR AND I HAD HAD THE SAME PROB. AT THAT TIME; HE MORE OR LESS IGNORED THE PROB; PROBABLY BECAUSE IT WAS A MINOR DRAIN AND WE WERE HEADED BACK ANYWAY. SO WHEN THE LOW VOLTAGE LIGHT CAME ON; I MORE OR LESS IGNORED IT; FIGURING THERE WASN'T MUCH I COULD DO AND I WAS ALREADY HALF WAY TO MY DEST. I DID TURN OFF MY LNDG LIGHTS; WHICH SEEMED TO HELP A BIT; BUT DUE TO THE HAZE AND LIMITED VISIBILITY I DIDN'T FEEL SAFE TURNING OFF THE NAV LIGHTS OR THE BEACON. I REACHED BAYBRIDGE WITH NO FURTHER TROUBLE; AND DEPARTED FOR WILMINGTON. I CONSIDERED GOING STRAIGHT BACK DUE TO THE LOW VOLTAGE LIGHT; BUT I DIDN'T THINK I HAD ENOUGH FUEL TO SAFELY MAKE IT ALL THE WAY BACK TO BRANDYWINE. SO I DECIDED TO PROCEED WITH THE ORIGINAL PLAN AND HEAD TO WILMINGTON; WITH PLANS TO FUEL UP THERE AND CALL THE FLT SCHOOL TO REQUEST ADVICE ON THE LOW VOLTAGE PROB. THE TRIP TO WILMINGTON WAS UNEVENTFUL; ALTHOUGH WHILE ON A DOWNWIND LEG FOR A LNDG THE TWR ASKED ME TO SQUAWK IDENT; WHICH I DID; AND WAS TOLD THAT AS FAR AS THEY COULD TELL I HAD NO XPONDER AT ALL. I PROCEEDED WITH THE LNDG; TAXIED TO THE RAMP; SHUT DOWN THE ENG AND HAD THE PLANE REFUELED. WHEN I TRIED TO START IT UP AGAIN; I FOUND THE BATTERY WAS MOSTLY DEAD. I CALLED THE FLT SCHOOL; AND WAS ADVISED TO GET A JUMP AND FLY THE PLANE BACK SO THEY COULD FIGURE OUT WHAT WAS WRONG; AND TO TRY CYCLING THE ALTERNATOR (A PROCESS I'D NEVER HEARD OF PRIOR TO THIS) IF IT ACTED UP AGAIN. I TOOK OFF WITHOUT INCIDENT; AND ADVISED THE TWR SHORTLY BEFORE TKOF THAT I WAS HAVING SOME ELECTRICAL DIFFICULTIES; JUST IN CASE IT BECAME AN ISSUE. APPROX 15 MI N OF WILMINGTON (HALF WAY TO BRANDYWINE); I FLEW INTO RAIN AND EVEN MORE HAZE; WHICH LOWERED MY VISIBILITY BEYOND WHAT I CONSIDERED SAFE; EVEN IN A FULLY OPERATIONAL ACFT. ABOUT THIS TIME I ALSO REALIZED THAT MY LIGHTS WERE NOW FULLY OUT; AND THE VOR NAV EQUIP I WAS USING AS A BACKUP TO MY OWN VISUAL REFS WASN'T RESPONDING. I TRIED THE RADIO; IT WAS COMPLETELY DEAD; AS WAS THE XPONDER. IN THESE CONDITIONS; THERE WAS NO WAY I COULD SAFELY FIND BRANDYWINE; AND WITH THE VISIBILITY DECREASING AND ALL MY LIGHTS OUT; I BEGAN TO FEAR A POSSIBLE COLLISION. I TURNED AROUND WITHOUT FURTHER DELAY AND PROCEEDED TO HEAD BACK TO WILMINGTON; ALTHOUGH I WASN'T ENTIRELY SURE HOW FAR OFF COURSE I HAD GOTTEN AND THUS EXACTLY WHICH DIRECTION WILMINGTON WAS. I WAS NERVOUS. I THOUGHT I COULD FIND WILMINGTON AGAIN; BUT ALL MY ELECTRICAL EQUIP WAS DEAD; THE VISIBILITY WAS BAD; AND I WAS BEGINNING TO HIT A BIT OF TURB. AMONGST ALL THIS EXCITEMENT; I ENTIRELY FORGOT THE FLT SCHOOL'S ADVICE OF CYCLING THE ALTERNATOR. I TOOK A FEW DEEP BREATHS; CALMED DOWN; AND HEADED SE; KNOWING THAT I'D HIT THE DELAWARE RIVER EVENTUALLY AND COULD FOLLOW IT DOWN TO A BRIDGE RIGHT NEXT TO WILMINGTON ARPT. I MANAGED TO FIND THE ARPT RATHER QUICKLY WITH THIS APCH; AND CAUTIOUSLY ENTERED THE PATTERN A FEW HUNDRED FT ABOVE NORMAL PATTERN ALT; IN THE HOPES IT'D HELP ME AVOID ANY OTHER ACFT IN THE PATTERN. BY NOW I WAS SURE THE CTL TWR MUST SEE ME AND KNOW SOMETHING WAS WRONG; AND I LOOKED TO THE CTL TWR FOR LIGHT SIGNALS; BUT I WASN'T ENTIRELY SURE WHERE TO LOOK -- ABOVE THE TWR; BENEATH IT? I WAS LATER TOLD THAT THE LIGHTS ARE HAND-HELD AND I SHOULD HAVE BEEN LOOKING DIRECTLY INTO THE TWR; BUT I HADN'T EVEN SPECULATED THIS AS A POSSIBILITY AT THE TIME (I WAS ENVISIONING SOME FORM OF STROBE LIGHTS). SO I DIDN'T SEE ANY LIGHT SIGNALS; BUT WAS FAIRLY SURE THEY WERE PROBABLY THERE SOMEWHERE. I CONSIDERED ROCKING THE WINGS TO LET THEM KNOW I WAS IN TROUBLE; BUT REMEMBERED SOMETHING I HAD READ IN A PVT PLT MANUAL AND DECIDED AGAINST IT. THE MANUAL STATES THAT A PLT WITH INOPERABLE COM EQUIP AT A CTLED AIRFIELD SHOULD ROCK HIS WINGS TO ACKNOWLEDGE THE TWR'S LIGHT SIGNALS. I DIDN'T THINK IT'D BE SAFE TO ROCK THE WINGS AT THIS POINT; BECAUSE I HAD NOT SEEN THE TWR'S LIGHT SIGNALS; AND I DIDN'T WANT TO RISK ACKNOWLEDGING A LIGHT SIGNAL BY ACCIDENT; AND THEN POTENTIALLY DOING SOMETHING ELSE. SO I CONTINUED INTO A NICE; SLOW LNDG; PULLED OFF THE RWY AS FAST AS I COULD; AND CAUTIOUSLY TAXIED TO THE RAMP. I WAS MET BY ARPT SECURITY AND GAVE THEM THE FULL STORY. I TOLD HIM I HAD NO XPONDER; NO RADIO -- NO WAY OF COMMUNICATING WITH THE TWR WHATSOEVER; AND I DIDN'T HAVE ENOUGH VISIBILITY OR FAMILIARITY WITH THE AREA TO SAFELY FIND AN UNCTLED ARPT TO LAND AT. AND WITH ALL MY LIGHTS OUT; THE DANGER OF A POTENTIAL COLLISION WAS FURTHER INCREASED. THE AIRLINE PERSONNEL SAID I SHOULD HAVE ROCKED MY WINGS; BUT HAD THEY BEEN GIVING ME A RED LIGHT; THIS WOULD'VE ACKNOWLEDGED IT; EVEN THOUGH I WAS STILL PROCEEDING IN FOR A LNDG. I DECIDED IT BETTER TO JUST PROCEED IN FOR AN OBVIOUS AND SLOW LNDG; AND GIVE THEM TIME TO ACCOUNT FOR IT. I WAS ISSUED AN ARPT MGMNT WARNING FOR NOT ROCKING MY WINGS.