The Rescue Tour – Dave Anderson & Roger Walck

Dave Anderson still gets emotional about the day in 1993 the plane carrying his missionary group crashed in the Bering Sea.

The six passengers and pilot were returning from the Russian Far East that August day when their twin-engine Piper Navajo ran out of fuel about 25 miles west of Nome.

What happened became the stuff of news stories and national awards.

The plane crashed, leaving everyone aboard clinging to empty gas cans. The seven missionaries were in 41 degree water for about an hour. Their recue has been called the most dramatic air/sea rescue in aviation history. A series of extraordinary events led to the arrival of two helicopters that pulled all seven survivors from icy water to safety.

Anderson, who now leads a retreat ministry in Arizona, credits a higher power.