Footage Surfaces Of GOP Frontrunner Plane Crash

Newly obtained surveillance footage captured the terrifying moment a small plane carrying Republican Rep. Tom Tiffany made an emergency landing in Lake Wausau after suddenly losing power.

The video, recorded by a camera at a home along the Wisconsin lake, shows the aircraft hitting the water Saturday night. CBS 58 reporter Kathryn Merck shared the footage Monday after it was provided by Wausau resident Beth Hartinger. The emergency landing can be seen approximately 28 seconds into the recording.

Tiffany, the Republican nominee for governor of Wisconsin, was returning from the La Crosse County Lincoln Day Dinner when the four-seat aircraft began experiencing trouble during its final approach to Wausau Downtown Airport. Pilot Leonard Boltz, 73, attempted to restart the engine but was unable to restore power.

Tiffany said Boltz instructed him to tighten his seatbelt shortly before bringing the aircraft down on the lake. Roughly 10 seconds later, the plane struck the water. Tiffany’s head hit the dashboard during the impact, leaving him with a cut above his right eye that required 12 stitches.

The congressman and Boltz initially remained with the plane and called 911, but they were forced to enter the water after the aircraft began to sink. The two men swam approximately 100 to 150 feet before reaching a shallow area, where they waited for rescuers.

Wausau Fire Department personnel reached the pair by boat roughly 15 minutes after authorities received the emergency call shortly before 9 p.m. Both men were transported to Aspirus Wausau Hospital, treated for minor injuries and later released.

WATCH:

#NEW: Surveillance video from a home on Lake Wausau shows the moment the plane with @TomTiffanyWI on board hit the water.

You can see the emergency landing around 28 seconds into the video Beth Hartinger of Wausau shared with me. @CBS58 pic.twitter.com/0OO7ms4gFk

— Kathryn Merck TV (@KathrynMerckTV) September 14, 2026

“We are just really fortunate,” Tiffany said during an emotional press conference Sunday. “We’re really fortunate that God was looking after us last night.”

Tiffany also credited Boltz with preventing the emergency from becoming a deadly tragedy. Boltz is a retired Air Force pilot and had previously flown with the congressman.

“All that happened to me was my head hit the dash in front of me, and that was the extent of the damage,” Tiffany said, according to FOX 11.

ALERT: Republican congressman from Wisconsin gives emotional statement recalling an emergency plane landing in a lake.

Tom Tiffany, a candidate for governor, was in the small plane, a Beechcraft K35, that lost power and had to make a crash landing in Lake Wausau.

Tiffany says… pic.twitter.com/dsYmwgvCpv

— E X X ➠A L E R T S (@ExxAlerts) September 14, 2026

The aircraft, identified as a single-engine Beechcraft K35 Bonanza, remained partially submerged in the lake following the incident. Recovery crews used airbags to raise it to the surface Monday before lifting it onto land and transporting it to a storage location. The Marathon County Sheriff’s Office and Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources assisted with the operation.

The Federal Aviation Administration is investigating why the plane lost power. The National Transportation Safety Board may also become involved depending on the extent of the damage, according to the Associated Press.

Despite the frightening incident, Tiffany said he has no intention of ending his gubernatorial campaign or permanently avoiding air travel. Doctors advised him not to fly for several days, but he planned to return to the campaign trail Monday.

Tiffany’s Democratic opponent, Milwaukee County Executive David Crowley, offered prayers for everyone involved and praised the pilot’s actions.

Tiffany joked that he had been unable to receive many calls following the crash because his cellphone was still at the bottom of the lake.

“If [President Trump] has, he probably called my phone,” Tiffany said of a possible call from the president. “And it’s being answered by one of the fish down in Lake Wausau.”

Tiffany currently represents Wisconsin’s 7th Congressional District and is seeking to succeed outgoing Democratic Gov. Tony Evers. He will face Crowley in the November general election.