A student pilot safely landed a training aircraft in Argentina after her flight instructor died during a lesson. Local authorities launched an investigation into the circumstances surrounding the incident.
Investigation launched into the training flight
The training flight took place near Toledo in Córdoba province aboard a Cessna 150. Officials confirmed the student was uninjured and the aircraft landed safely.
According to Argentina’s public prosecutor, flight instructor Leandro Andrés Bertazzo, 42, jumped out of the plane midair during the flight on July 4. Opening a plane door mid-flight would be extremely difficult and similar to opening a car door at 120mph. Eduardo Alvarez, director of the Flying Parrot Cordoba flight school where Bertazzo worked, said colleagues had not noticed any signs that the experienced instructor intended to harm himself before the flight.
“He made this tragic decision on board an aircraft with another person by his side, it’s impossible to think about it or understand it, but the human mind is so complex,” Alvarez said.
Student praised for remaining calm
The 22-year-old student pilot, Rosario, remained composed despite the situation and successfully landed the aircraft without damage since she had already qualified for her private pilot’s licence. Alvarez said the student was in “complete shock” following the incident but handled the emergency professionally. Bertazzo had reportedly completed another training flight earlier the same day before taking off with Rosario.
The flight school described Bertazzo as a respected and experienced instructor, with previous flying experience in both Argentina and Chile. Federal prosecutors are continuing to investigate the case to establish the full circumstances surrounding the training flight. His body has since been found in a nearby field.
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