Wally Mk 2
Actually I'm not really disagreeing with you, I guess what I am really saying is that GA leaves it's pilots terribly exposed when it comes to training.
When I went from a four-engined jet and over 10,000 hours experience to my current GA job, I felt well out of my depth. I was released to line flying very quickly and left to fend for myself. I didn't feel at all comfortable, and that's with all that airline experience!
So I do agree with you that this pilot probably never stopped trying, but I suspect that his last few minutes were mostly filled with desperation and no clear plan, following a bad judgement call. That sort of thing can be mostly fixed with good training - the examples I was quoting were given as examples of coolness under pressure, and a reasoned plan being executed (to some extent, anyway).
So what I am saying is that training is the issue. I reckon this guy was let down a bit by his training - not by the people who did it, who I am sure did a good job, but by a system that sets pilots loose without covering all the bases. That has certainly been my experience, and that of most of the GA people I know.