/ WHAT WENT WRONG / 10 feet too low I Abnormal pattern leads to CFIT at night BY ALICIA HERRON / ILLUSTRATION BY BRETT AFFRUNTI t's the evening of June 9, 2020, and the pilot of a Zenair 601HDS, N6402X, is out for a solo flight in the Phoenix, Arizona, area from Deer Valley Airport (DVT) to the Ak-Chin Regional Airport (A39), 43 nautical miles to the south. The pilot of 02X often flies at night-he enjoys the view of the night sky and taking aerial photos. And at the beginning of summer in Arizona's Valley of the Sun, there's plenty of incentive to fly at night rather than in the heat of the day when temperatures can easily soar above 100 degrees Fahrenheit. 76 AOPA PILOT / September 2024