WAUSAU, Wis. — Republican U.S. Rep. Tom Tiffany said he and a pilot swam to shore after the small plane they were aboard was forced to land in a Wisconsin lake Saturday night.
Tiffany said he was flying back from the La Crosse County Lincoln Day Dinner when the aircraft lost power while nearing Wausau Downtown Airport. The pilot, Leonard Boltz, brought the plane down in Lake Wausau, leaving both men in the water before they made their way to safety.
“After landing, we called 911. 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,” Tiffany wrote in a post on X.
The Marathon County Sheriff’s Office said the emergency landing occurred shortly before 9 p.m. Saturday. Tiffany and Boltz escaped the aircraft and contacted authorities, then were picked up moments later by emergency crews aboard a fire department airboat.
Both men were transported to a local hospital for treatment of minor injuries and later released. Tiffany’s campaign said he sustained a cut above his right eye that required stitches.
Authorities placed a no-wake buoy near the submerged aircraft and urged boaters to stay away from the site until the plane is removed. The Federal Aviation Administration said it would investigate. A National Transportation Safety Board spokesperson said the agency would wait for the FAA’s assessment to determine whether the damage was serious enough to warrant NTSB involvement.
Tiffany is seeking the Republican nomination for governor of Wisconsin and has received an endorsement from President Donald Trump.
David Crowley, the Democratic candidate, posted a message on X wishing Tiffany a “quick recovery” and praising the pilot’s “heroism.”
The aircraft was identified as a single-engine, four-seat Beechcraft Bonanza.
Copyright © 2026 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.
