What happened
On the day of the accident, an airline transport certificated pilot was performing a landing toward the west in a float-equipped airplane. The weather conditions at the time involved winds from the north at approximately five knots. During the landing flare, the aircraft's airspeed was recorded at about 50 knots.
As the aircraft touched down on the water, the left float dug into the surface. This impact caused the aircraft to pivot to the left and the nose to pitch downward. Following the impact, the pilot and one passenger successfully exited the aircraft. The airplane remained floating in a nose-down position for approximately 15 minutes before slowly nosed over, ultimately remaining afloat upside down. There were no injuries reported during the event.
The investigation
Mechanical examination of the aircraft revealed that the impact with the water caused the left float to be crushed upward against the fuselage.