It has been known for decades that the approach phase is perhaps the most critical phase and during which most errors occur and incidents result;
I'm in furious agreement with you Rat5 about all your comments on flying the plane and knowing what your profile is/ should be ( a basic 3x profile isn't that hard even if the airfield is above sea level) but I think it is worth pointing out that the above sentence is only half right.
The approach and landing phase is the most critical as you said, but more errors are made in the pre-departure phase of flight. I think that is something worth knowing and thinking about when I see people rushing like mad to claw back 5 minutes.
Cheers