What happened
A pilot operating an amphibious float-equipped airplane departed from a paved runway to deliver equipment to a remote lake. During the flight, the pilot was engaged in transporting multiple loads of supplies to a client at the destination. While searching for a suitable area to unload, the pilot became preoccupied with several tasks, including adjusting the flaps and addressing a minor issue with the aircraft's GPS receiver.
Upon reaching the lake, the pilot performed the landing with the landing gear wheels in the extended position. As the aircraft touched down on the water, the extended wheels caused the plane to nose over. The incident resulted in damage to the left wing and the fuselage.
Findings
The investigation determined that the pilot failed to visually confirm the landing gear configuration before touchdown. Although the aircraft is equipped with landing gear position lights on the instrument panel and a mirror designed to allow visual monitoring of the gear, the pilot did not utilize these tools. The primary contributing factor was pilot distraction caused by managing flight controls and navigating via the GPS during the approach.