CONFUSION REIGNS IN THE COCKPIT OF A B737-800 DURING A NIGHT OP MISSED APCH AND AN ALT EXCURSION WHEN APCH CTLR ATTEMPTS TO SQUEEZE ANOTHER FLT AHEAD OF IT ON AN RNAV APCH TO RWY 1 AT LAS; NV.

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THE EVENT BEGAN WHEN ATC VECTORED US ONTO FINAL FOR A VISUAL TO RWY 1R AT LAS. THE CTLR TURNED US ONTO FINAL; AND HAD ANOTHER ACFT TURNING ONTO FINAL SIMULTANEOUSLY IN FRONT OF US. (WE WERE CONFIGURED WITH LNDG GEAR DOWN FLAPS 15; AND THE FMC HAD THE RNAV RWY 1R APCH LOADED; AND THE AUTOPLT WAS ALREADY IN THE APCH MODE (STILL IN HDG; BUT IT HAD INTERCEPTED THE APCH COURSE). THE TFC WAS VERY CLOSE; AND WE SAID SO TO THE CTLR. HE ASKED IF WE WANTED S TURNS OR A VECTOR. AT FIRST IT APPEARED THAT AN S TURN OR 2 MAY WORK; BUT THE TFC SLOWED TOO QUICKLY. WE ASKED FOR A VECTOR; AND WERE ISSUED ONE. I ADVANCED THE PWR; BEGAN A TURN FOR THE VECTOR; AND ASKED THE CAPT (PNF) FOR THE AFTER TKOF CHK; FOLLOWED BY THE DSCNT CHKLIST; AND ASKED FOR GEAR UP FLAPS UP TO CLEAN UP THE ACFT AND SPD MODE FOR THE AUTOPLT. (LATER; I REALIZED THAT I HAD NOT PRESSED THE TOGA SWITCH. THE AUTOPLT WAS LOCKED IN APCH MODE; AND WOULD NOT ENGAGE OR TAKE A SPD MODE.) AT THE FINISH OF THE TURN FOR THE VECTOR; I NOTICED THE PREDICTIVE GPWS WAS SHOWING GREEN; FOLLOWED BY YELLOW; INDICATING TERRAIN WAS ANYWHERE FROM 2000 FT BELOW US TO 2000 FT ABOVE US. I ALSO NOTICED AN ACFT AT MY 2 O'CLOCK POS BEING VECTORED ON A BASE TO FINAL TURN. HE WAS ABOVE OUR ALT. I ASKED THE CAPT TO GET A CLRNC TO 6000 FT; HE SAID MSA FOR THE AREA WAS 'OK' AT OUR ALT. I ASKED HIM TO GET 6000 FT ANYWAY; AS MY GPWS MAP WAS SHOWING TERRAIN AT 12 O'CLOCK POS; AND TO GET ME 6000 FT. HE CALLED THE CTLR FOR THE CLB. THE CTLR WAS TALKING TO OTHER TFC; AND I NOTED THAT THE YELLOW AREA WAS CLOSING QUICKLY. MY TCASII SHOWED NO CRITICAL TFC; SO I BEGAN A CLB; AND AGAIN; ASKED FOR THE ALT. JUST AS I REACHED 5300 FT; THE CTLR CLRED US TO 6000 FT AND ASKED IF WE HAD A GPWS ALERT. THE CAPT ANSWERED 'NO.' WE WERE VECTORED FOR ANOTHER VISUAL AND LANDED WITHOUT FURTHER INCIDENT. FACTORS INCLUDED LACK OF CREW COORD; VIGOROUS MULTI-TASKING; NIGHT AND MOUNTAINOUS TERRAIN; TFC CONGESTION; AND CTLR WORKLOAD. THE CAPT FELT THAT WE WERE AT A SAFE ALT; AND INSTEAD OF COMPLYING WITH MY REQUEST FOR HIGHER; HE SET ABOUT TRYING TO CONVINCE ME OF HIS POS. THE PNF WAS RECONFIGURING THE ACFT AND RUNNING CHKLISTS; COMMUNICATING WITH ATC. IT WAS A MOONLESS NIGHT; WE WERE ON A VECTOR FROM A CTLR WHO WAS VERY BUSY; AND HAD JUST GIVEN US A BAD VECTOR. THIS MADE ME QUESTION IN MY OWN MIND THE VERACITY OF HIS VECTOR; AND WHETHER HE; IN FACT; WAS GOING TO TURN US IN TIME FOR THE ONCOMING TERRAIN. THE VECTOR GIVEN DIDN'T GIVE A CLR SENSE OF WHETHER THIS WAS A GAR OR A SIMPLE VECTOR. WE COULD HAVE JUST LEFT THE GEAR DOWN AND FLAPS AT 15 DEGS FOR A SHORT TURN BACK TO FINAL; BUT IF IT WAS GOING TO BE A LONG VECTOR; IT WOULD BE BETTER TO CLEAN UP. THERE WERE; TO SAY THE LEAST; LOTS OF JUDGEMENTS BEING MADE; AND WE WERE OUTSIDE THE REALM OF 'WRITTEN OR TRAINED FOR' PROCS. IN SHORT; THE OVERALL SIT OF NIGHT; TFC CONGESTION; A BUSY CTLR; AN EXTREMELY BUSY COCKPIT; AND A PNF WITH A DIFFERENT AGENDA; AND CLOSING ON RISING TERRAIN; CONTRIBUTED TO THE ALTDEV. CLRER COMMAND FROM THE PIC COULD HAVE AVOIDED IT (IF HE DIDN'T LIKE WHAT I WAS DOING; HE COULD HAVE ASKED FOR THE ACFT) OR IF THE PNF HAD JUST GOTTEN THE ALT CLRNC WHEN FIRST ASKED FOR; THE DEV COULD HAVE BEEN AVOIDED.