Plane recovery in Lake Wausau
WAUSAU, Wis. - The National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) released its preliminary report on the Sept. 12 emergency water landing of a small plane carrying Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Tiffany in Lake Wausau.
Tiffany was flying from La Crosse to Wausau on the night of Sept. 12.
NTSB report
The Details:
The report says the pilot observed a higher-than-normal engine exhaust gas temperature while on approach to Wausau Downtown Airport, which reminded him to switch fuel tanks.
When he switched to the right fuel tank and pushed the mixture and throttle levers fully forward, the engine failed to respond. The pilot acknowledged that he did not activate the electric fuel boost pump while attempting to restore engine power.
According to the report, the pilot told an aviation mechanic "the loss of engine power was due to his delay in switching fuel tanks and not turning on the electric fuel boost pump."
Plane recovery in Lake Wausau
Plane emergency landing
The backstory:
The Beech K35 airplane lost power and made an emergency water landing in Lake Wausau, causing substantial damage to the fuselage, left wing, left aileron, and engine mount.
Tiffany and the pilot exited the sinking aircraft, swam to a shallow area, and were rescued by a Wausau Fire Department boat.
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The plane weighed about 2,500 pounds and rested in six to seven feet of water with its landing gear retracted.
Plane recovery in Lake Wausau
On Monday, Sept. 14, crews began the recovery by deploying its Remote Operated Vehicle, or ROV. The ROV documented the aircraft and gave the team another look at the underwater conditions before divers went to work.
Divers rigged the aircraft and attached the lift bags. The team used about 8,000 pounds of lift capacity to raise the aircraft from the bottom.
Once the aircraft was suspended in the water, it was moved into deeper water and carefully towed to shore. The divers then removed the lift bags and secured the aircraft so that a crane could lift the aircraft out of the water.
The aircraft was later returned to Wausau Downtown Airport for the Federal Aviation Administration’s investigation.
Tom Tiffany plane crashes into Lake Wausau, how crews got it out
Republican gubernatorial candidate Tom Tiffany's small plane lost power and made an emergency water landing in Lake Wausau back on Sept. 12. Now we're learning what it took to get the plane out of the water.
The Source: Information in this post was provided by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB) and Marathon County Sheriff's Office. FOX6 has extensively reported on the plane crash into Lake Wausau.