N320DM

On July 13, 2002, about 1130 mountain standard time, an amateur-built, experimental McConnell Lancair 320 airplane, N320DM, contacted the runway with the left wing prior to landing and came to rest inverted in a drainage culvert at the Sedona Airport (SEZ), Sedona, Arizona. The airplane, operated by the owner/pilot under the provisions of 14 CFR Part 91, sustained substantial damage. The private pilot and passenger were not injured. Visual meteorological conditions prevailed for the cross-country flight that departed the McClellan-Palomar Airport (CRQ), Carlsbad, California, at 0940. The flight was scheduled to terminate at SEZ.

In a written statement, the pilot stated that he received a weather briefing before departure for the route of flight, which reported light and variable winds at the destination. The pilot then departed and experienced a uneventful flight except for a "few bumps."

About 12 miles from Sedona, the pilot listened to the automated weather observation system (AWOS) frequency, which reported the winds from 160 degrees at 5-6 knots. The pilot then made his initial call to SEZ traffic stating his intention to enter the traffic pattern for runway 3. The pilot added that the normal procedure at SEZ was to land on runway 3 due to its upward slope, and takeoff downhill on runway 21 unless the winds are greater than 10 knots.

The pilot became established on final approach. As the airplane crossed the threshold, the descent was normal, the pilot noted the airspeed was gradually bleeding off, and he was waiting for the wheels to touch down. He said that suddenly a "burst of wind hit from the right side," "lifting the right wing." The pilot added power and attempted to stabilize the airplane; however, the wind pushed the airplane "strongly to the left" and the left wing struck the ground. The airplane spun to the left, the propeller hit the ground, and the airplane skidded across the infield stopping inverted just short of the inner taxiway.

The private pilot accumulated a total of 813 hours of flight time, of which 161 hours were obtained in the accident airplane. A review of the Airport/Facility Directory and AirNav's Airport website, revealed no procedures for landing and takeoff due to the runway slope. The runway is 5,132 feet long, and the threshold elevation of runway 3 and 21 are 4,735.8 feet and 4,829.5 feet mean sea level (msl), respectively.