N617MA

On June 17, 2005, about 1300 mountain standard time, an American Champion 8GCBC, N617MA, ground looped at the Phoenix Deer Valley Airport (DVT), Phoenix Arizona. The pilot/owner was operating the airplane under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91. The private pilot and one passenger were not injured; the airplane sustained substantial damage. The personal cross-country flight departed Albuquerque (ABQ), New Mexico, about 1030, with a planned destination of Phoenix. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed, and no flight plan had been filed.

In a written statement, the pilot reported that he performed a standard wheel landing, and ground looped on the landing rollout due to unforeseen dust devil activity in the area. During the ground loop, the right wing, right wheel and landing strut, and right horizontal stabilizer were damaged from impact with the dirt off the side of the runway.

The pilot stated that the airplane and engine had no mechanical failures or malfunctions during the flight.

In a telephone conversation, a Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) inspector reported that he was at the Raytheon building at the time of the accident. He talked to the pilot after the accident, and the pilot stated to him that he ground looped.

In his conversation, the FAA inspector stated that there might have been dust devil activity in the area. However, there was no dust devil activity on the runway at the time of the accident.

The pilot was landing on runway 25. An aviation routine weather report (METAR) issued for Deer Valley at 1253 reported that the winds were from 160 degrees at 6 knots.