BOULDER, MT, USA
N4036E
Piper PA-18
The tailwheel airplane sustained substantial damage when it ground-looped after landing off-airport. The pilot stated that he was landing on a north-south dirt road to the south. He stated that the winds were calm and the airplane rolled into a dust devil and directional control was lost. He said there were no ruts or ditches on the road. The pilot reported that all his flight experience was in tailwheel airplanes
On April 10, 1999, approximately 1230 mountain daylight time, N4036E, a Piper PA-18, sustained substantial damage when it ground-looped after landing off-airport near Boulder, Montana. The private pilot and his passenger were uninjured. The flight, conducted in visual meteorological conditions, had originated at Bozeman, Montana. There was no flight plan filed for the flight, and no report of the ELT actuating. The pilot stated that he was landing on a north-south dirt road to the south, near the Carey ranch, southeast of Boulder. He stated that the winds were calm and the airplane rolled into a dust devil and directional control was lost. He said there were no ruts or ditches on the road. The pilot reported that all his flight experience was in tailwheel airplanes, and did not report any mechanical malfunctions with the airplane.
The pilot-in-command's failure to maintain directional control after encountering a dust-devil during landing rollout, resulting in a ground loop and collapse of the main landing gear. Factors include the dust-devil.
Source: NTSB Aviation Accident Database
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