Tom Tiffany Plane Crashes Into Lake Wausau During Final Flight

Desperate cries echoed off the dark waters of Lake Wausau as rescuers scrambled to find two men after Tom Tiffany's plane vanished beneath the surface. The Republican gubernatorial candidate had lost all power moments before touchdown, leaving first responders with little more than a last GPS ping from a phone believed submerged deep in the lake.

Dispatch audio captured the frantic race for resources as crews demanded extra ambulances, engines, and boats to cover the expanding search area. One responder warned that they were looking for a downed plane while another tracked thermal imaging equipment against the cold night air. A witness claimed he saw the aircraft crash but could only offer a general location, forcing deputies to sweep multiple points along the shoreline.

"It was probably about 10 seconds later," Tiffany recounted during his Sunday news conference, describing how pilot Leonard Boltz told him they were going down and to pull seatbelts tight. "And that's exactly what I did. I gave it a yank and pulled it good and tight." The impact drove Tiffany's head into the dashboard, leaving a gash above his right eye that required twelve stitches, while Boltz received four for injuries of his own.

The two men checked on each other before escaping through the passenger door as water rushed in to fill the cabin. They climbed atop the sinking fuselage and waited roughly ten minutes as emergency lights flickered around them. As the aircraft slipped underwater beneath their feet, they began swimming toward the airport but only made it one hundred to one hundred fifty feet. Tiffany reached a high spot where the water stood about five feet deep before stopping.

"I said to Len, 'Let's just stay right here until help can come,' because we could see the sirens," Tiffany said, his voice cracking under the weight of the ordeal. "We are just really fortunate. We're really fortunate that God was looking after us last night." He paused there, clearly emotional, before continuing to describe how Boltz's experience kept them from drowning in the freezing water.

Rescuers eventually announced they had located both victims and were pulling them out of the lake. Minutes later, a crew reported that both men were alert and conscious, confirming everyone aboard had been accounted for safely. Tiffany credited Boltz's skill with steering the crippled plane clear of disaster during that dramatic emergency landing on Sunday.

A former Air Force pilot trainer raised the landing gear just before touchdown, stopping the plane from cartwheeling across the water. He acted fast enough to think, "We've got to make sure and pull that landing gear up," according to Tiffany. That move might have saved them. The aircraft was still moving between 70 and 80 mph when it struck the lake. Tiffany called the impact a fast-moving car crash.

"We're fortunate the plane didn't flip," he said. He credits the pilot's skill for avoiding a worse outcome. Wausau Mayor Doug Diny, who is also a former military pilot, praised Boltz for landing safely at night. "The last thing anyone wants to do as a pilot is put the aircraft in the water at night," Diny stated.

Tiffany and Boltz went to Aspirus Wausau Hospital before being released after treatment. A CT scan showed no concussion, though doctors told him to watch for symptoms and avoid flying for several days. Tiffany canceled a trip to Washington, D.C., but plans to return to the campaign trail Monday. "This will not deter me in my efforts that I started a year ago to become the next governor of the state of Wisconsin," he said.

The single-engine Beechcraft Bonanza stayed submerged Sunday while the Federal Aviation Administration investigates what caused it to lose power. House Speaker Mike Johnson celebrated Tiffany's return after this close call on X. "Grateful to God no one was hurt in this accident and my good friend @TomTiffanyWI is safe and back on the trail!" Johnson wrote.

Tiffany represents Wisconsin's 7th Congressional District and is running against Democratic Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley in November. Crowley said he was grateful Tiffany and the pilot survived. He also praised Boltz for his quick actions during the emergency landing.