Erhard Schelter and Volker Hameister have only one thing in common: They want to escape into the West, from Boltenhagen across the Baltic Sea. Together they check out the heavily guarded border and ultimately decide to dare embark on their perilous venture in the night of 21st September 1974. Schelter is an excellent swimmer and well-prepared for the long swim in ice-cold water. But it soon becomes evident that Hameister is neither fit enough to meet the strain, nor is he sufficiently equipped. Far out in the open sea, Schelter becomes his only hope. And to make things worse, the swimmers are then noticed by an NVA border patrolboat ... The rescue of the two GDR citizens was a spectacular case in the news. Director Arend Agthe augments Schelter's gripping recount of his escape and his motivation with dramatically staged acting sequences.