Outwest,
I still sleep like a baby. This incident simply demonstrates the ignorance of pilots second-guessing a manufacturer. This one had nothing to do with whether they were armed or not, and in any case the inflation was simply an inconvenience that required a return and normal landing. By flying without the floats armed, all the operator is doing here is giving away a safety net in the case of a CFIT or inadvertent ditching.
Interesting your inference that a so-called high quality operator like CHC would have both an "armed" and "non-armed" over water policy in two different locations. How does that happen? Does every pilot make it up on his own in your company?