A four-seat plane carrying Wisconsin Congressman Tom Tiffany lost power over Lake Wausau Saturday night, forcing the pilot into an emergency water landing that ended with both men swimming for their lives.
Story Snapshot
- Tiffany, a Republican running for Wisconsin governor, was aboard a Beechcraft Bonanza returning from a campaign dinner when the plane lost power near Wausau Downtown Airport.
- The pilot brought the aircraft down on Lake Wausau, and both men swam to shallow water as the plane began sinking.
- A Wausau Fire Department airboat rescued Tiffany, 68, and the pilot, 73, at 9:05 p.m. Saturday, September 12.
- Tiffany suffered a laceration above his right eye requiring stitches and was released from the hospital the same night.
- The Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board have been notified and will investigate.
What Happened On The Water That Night
Tiffany described the moment in his own words shortly after the ordeal. He said the plane “lost power as we approached the Wausau Downtown Airport” and that the pilot “made an emergency water landing in Lake Wausau.”
That kind of split-second decision, choosing a lake over a crash landing on unfamiliar terrain, is often what separates survivable outcomes from tragedy in small aircraft emergencies.
Once the plane hit the water, the danger did not end. Tiffany said the pair called 911 immediately, but the aircraft began taking on water fast.
“As the plane began to submerge, we exited the aircraft and swam to a shallow area, where we waited until emergency responders reached us by boat,” he said. That wait, treading water in a lake at night, tested both men before help arrived.
Rescue came fast once dispatch got the call. A Wausau Fire Department airboat pulled Tiffany and the pilot from the water at 9:05 p.m., according to reporting on the timeline of that Saturday night. From there, both men were taken to Aspirus Wausau Hospital for evaluation.
Injuries, Identification, And What Comes Next
Tiffany’s campaign confirmed he suffered a laceration above his right eye that required stitches, and he was released from the hospital that same night. The pilot was also treated for minor injuries at the same hospital.
Both men avoided anything close to a worst-case outcome, a fact that speaks to the pilot’s handling of the emergency and the speed of the local fire department’s response.
The aircraft itself was identified as a Beechcraft Bonanza, a four-seat single-engine plane, and it remained in Lake Wausau after the rescue.
Recovering a sunken aircraft from a lake bottom is not a quick job, and until crews pull it out, the plane sits as a literal underwater time capsule of whatever went wrong that night.
Tiffany publicly thanked the pilot and the emergency crews who responded, crediting their “quick action” for the safe outcome.
That kind of gratitude from a sitting congressman and gubernatorial candidate carries weight, both as a personal statement and as an acknowledgment of the first responders who train for exactly this kind of scenario.
Why The Investigation Will Take Time
The Marathon County Sheriff’s Office confirmed that both the Federal Aviation Administration and the National Transportation Safety Board were notified and will investigate the incident.
That is standard procedure for any aircraft accident involving injury or a downed plane, regardless of who is on board.
General aviation investigations of this kind typically take many months to complete, since investigators must examine the wreckage, review maintenance records, and interview the pilot before issuing findings.
The National Transportation Safety Board has stated publicly that its preliminary reports contain only on-scene facts, not conclusions about what caused an incident. That means the public will likely wait a while for a full technical explanation of why the engine lost power that night.
Republican nominee for Wisconsin governor Tom Tiffany suffered minor injuries after a small plane he was on had to make an emergency landing Saturday night.https://t.co/BcceH5d1mL
— SeehaferNews (@SeehaferNews) September 14, 2026
For now, the known facts stand on their own. A congressman running for governor and his pilot survived a genuine emergency, walked away with treatable injuries, and thanked the people who got them out of the water. The rest, the mechanical why behind the power loss, belongs to the federal investigators now examining the case.
Sources:
townhall.com, wpr.org, yahoo.com
