LAKE LA-4-200

Full Narrative

On January 16, 2026, at 1609 Pacific daylight time, a Lake LA-4-200, N48X sustained substantial damage when it was involved in an accident near Dewey, Washington. The flight instructor and student pilot were uninjured. The amphibious airplane was operated as a Title 14 Code of Federal Regulations Part 91 instructional flight.
The flight instructor stated that he was conducting familiarization training with a student. They departed Skagit Regional Airport (BVS), Burlington/Mount Vernon, Washington, and were performing water landings at Lake Campbell, Washington. Upon touching down on the water the nose pitched forward in the water, resulting in a broken windscreen and substantial damage to the airplane. The engine would not start so they paddled to shore.
Preliminary examination of the airplane showed damage to the nose gear doors. The flight instructor believed that the nose landing gear was prevented from retracting completely due to wheel contact with the landing gear door. The flight instructor told investigators that he visually confirmed the main landing gear were retracted prior to landing using the convex mirrors located on the aircraft’s sponsons.
The airplane was retained for further examination.