Flight Crew Commercial; Flight Crew Instrument
Aircraft Equipment Problem Critical; Deviation / Discrepancy - Procedural Published Material / Policy; Flight Deck / Cabin / Aircraft Event Smoke / Fire / Fumes / Odor
Air Traffic Control Provided Assistance; Aircraft Aircraft Damaged; Flight Crew Returned To Departure Airport; Flight Crew Requested ATC Assistance / Clarification; Flight Crew Landed in Emergency Condition; General Flight Cancelled / Delayed; General Maintenance Action
Aircraft; Procedure
I experienced an electrical issue while flying through the (ZZZ SFRA). I was flying south-eastbound at 3;500 feet MSL per the procedure depicted on the ZZZ TAC chart. As I was passing directly over ZZZ and making a radio call on the air-to-air frequency to report my position; my intercom and a number of other electrical systems simultaneously failed. My radio transmission was cut short mid-sentence. Immediately thereafter I noticed a burning electrical smell. I quickly shut off the master switch to reduce the risk of an electrical fire. At this point it was clear the flight could not continue and a landing at a nearby airfield would be necessary. My home base; ZZZ1; was only 20 NM north of my current position. I elected to execute a climbing 180 degree turn to reverse course within the SFRA; north-westbound at 4;500 feet MSL. Once north of the SFRA; I remained clear of Class B; C; and D airspace; staying well west of ZZZ2 and the ZZZ3 Class C shelf. As I approached ZZZ1 from the northwest; I contacted the Tower Controller from my cell phone; and he cleared me to land. The no-flap landing was uneventful.As for lessons learned and next steps; I have a handheld radio; but the battery was unfortunately dead. I need to check this more regularly so that it can be relied upon in the event of lost comms. I've also printed out a list of ATC phone numbers in case I need to reach other facilities using my cell phone (I luckily had ZZZ1 Tower saved as a contact on my phone). I also think I should have more seriously considered descending immediately and landing at a closer airport; such as ZZZ4. By climbing to join the reverse course of the SFRA; I put myself in a more dangerous position if an inflight fire had actually developed. Additionally; I have a fire extinguisher in my airplane; but it was secured under the back seat; and I never touched it. I should have removed it from its harness and had it ready to go in case it became needed.I think it's extremely important that pilots regularly think about what they would do in these types of abnormal situations. These situations don't happen often; but when they do quick action is sometimes required to avert a real emergency. I'm lucky this occurred during a daytime VFR flight. A couple weeks ago I was flying at night in IMC on an IFR flight plan. Had this occurred then the situation would have been far more serious.
C182 Pilot reported an electrical failure onboard; resulting in a loss of all communications and a return to the departure airport.