N46SW – RIchard Silva Seawind – 2018-10-12 NTSB Accident Report

On October 12, 2018, a Richard Silva Seawind (N46SW) was involved in an incident near Pocono Summit, PA. All 2 people aboard were uninjured. The aircraft sustained substantial damage.

The National Transportation Safety Board determined the probable cause of this incident to be: The pilot's improper decision to attempt to take off from a lake in high crosswind conditions, which resulted in the right wing lifting, the left wing impacting the water, and the airplane bouncing and then impacting the water hard.

The airline transport pilot of the amphibious airplane reported that he attempted to takeoff from a lake with a 20 to 30 knot crosswind. A video of the takeoff showed that as the right-wing lifted, the left-wing tip contacted the water; subsequently, the airplane bounced, touched down again hard with the nose oriented to the left. The pilot was able to correct course heading and continued to water taxi without further incident. The pilot added that he should not have departed in high crosswind conditions and admitted to pilot error.

The seaplane sustained substantial damage to the right aileron.

The pilot reported that there were no mechanical failures or malfunctions with the airplane that would have precluded normal operation.

This incident is documented in NTSB report GAA19CA051. AviatorDB cross-references NTSB investigation data with FAA registry records to provide comprehensive safety information for aircraft N46SW.