2) He didn't HIT the water. He gently touched it, it slowed him since he was under a fairly low power flying relatively slowly and the airplane settled in.  It's quite possible that had he been "buzzing" the lake at high power and high speed, he would not have settled in, but skipped and continued flying.  No one knows for sure.

3) He did one hell of a job keeping the passengers a float and swimming toward shore.   After making a very poor judgement, he did some really smart things to ensure the survival of all.  On THAT he is to be commended.

Walter