You don't know that. I thought the accepted facts were that Williamtown was VMC?
Yes, I do.
It was VMC, but not CAVOK. There was some scattered cloud. I can provide a reference for this should it be required.
you're implicitly grossly overstating the actual risk
No, I am not.
At no stage did I attach a risk score to this type of operation. I stand by my assertion that the risk is present, and should be mitigated. Is it *really* that difficult for you to change levels by 1000 feet to remove that risk? An ounce of prevention is worth a ton of cure.
Regardless of this, no amount of arguing can change the FACT that it was the PIC decision to do what he did, rather than wait. Was those five lives not worth a few minutes?