Reading this sad thread over the past few days has reminded me of a number of CFIT accidents during my 30 year career in aviation as well as some personal hairy moments as I gained experience. Were I to buy a 44 today the one must have option would be the autopilot. Having flown a few hours recently with this option has convinced me of its value in marginal VMC, over water and at night. I fully accept the risk that low hour pilots (and perhaps high hour pilots) might see it as an IMC option or a capability to fly when they otherwise would not, but IMHO stabilisation, the ability to maintain height and the ability to reduce cockpit workload in VMC is a significant improvement.