AN ACR FLC FLYING BE1900 INTO IFP LOSES RADIO CONTACT WITH ZLA.

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WE BEGAN THE VOR/DME RWY 34 APCH TO IFP AND WERE SUBSEQUENTLY CLRED FOR 'VISUAL APCH TO IFP' AFTER RPTING IFP ARPT IN SIGHT; BY ZLA. AFTER DSNDING BELOW APPROX 4000 FT MSL AND WITHIN 10 NM OF IFP; WE MADE AT LEAST 4 RADIO CALLS FOR A FREQ CHANGE TO TWR. OUR CALLS WERE NOT ANSWERED; EVEN THOUGH WE COULD HEAR CTR. AT APPROX 5 NM S OF IFP; WE CHANGED TO TWR FREQ AND RPTED OUR POS ON THE EXTENDED CTRLINE OF RWY 34. WE WERE THEN INSTRUCTED TO ENTER A R DOWNWIND FOR RWY 16. THE LACK OF AN ATC HDOF BY ZLA AND OUR CLOSE PROX TO IFP CREATED CONFUSION FOR ATC; HOWEVER; NO TFC CONFLICT OCCURRED THAT I AM AWARE OF; BUT THERE WAS TFC DISPLAYED ON OUR TCASII WITHIN 4 NM AND 500 FT OF OUR ACFT THAT WE ELECTED TO STEER AWAY FROM WITH A SLIGHTLY DIVERGING COURSE; BUT STILL TOWARD THE ARPT. THIS IS NOT THE FIRST INCIDENT OF THIS TYPE TO OCCUR AT THIS ARPT AND ATC NEEDS TO DEVELOP A PROC TO INITIALIZE A MORE TIMELY HDOF OF ACFT TO THE TWR TO ALLEVIATE THE CONFUSION THAT CAN BE CREATED FOR BOTH PLT AND CTLR!