CÓRDOBA, ARGENTINA — A student pilot safely landed a small training aircraft alone after her flight instructor died after leaving the plane during a flight lesson in central Argentina, authorities and the flight school said, as prosecutors investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident.
The incident occurred near Toledo, in Córdoba Province, during a training flight involving a Cessna 150 aircraft, according to a statement from Argentina’s public prosecutor’s office and reports citing officials familiar with the case. The instructor, Leandro Andrés Bertazzo, 42, was on board with a 22-year-old student identified as Rosario when the aircraft was in flight.
According to the student’s account reported by investigators and local media, Bertazzo removed his headset, unfastened his seatbelt and opened the aircraft door before exiting the plane. Prosecutors are investigating the circumstances of his death and have not publicly released a final determination about the cause or motive.
The student was able to maintain control of the aircraft and return to Coronel Olmedo Airport, where she completed a safe landing without damage to the plane, according to Eduardo Álvarez, director of the Flying Parrot Córdoba flight school where Bertazzo worked.
Álvarez said the student was in a state of shock but managed to follow procedures and land the aircraft. He also said the flight school had not observed indications that Bertazzo was planning such an action.
Authorities later recovered Bertazzo’s body, and the aircraft was placed under examination as part of the investigation, according to reports citing officials. Investigators are examining the events leading up to the incident, including any factors that may have contributed to the instructor leaving the aircraft.
Bertazzo was an experienced pilot and instructor, according to the flight school and local reports. Álvarez said colleagues were shocked by the event and described Bertazzo as someone who had not shown warning signs before the incident.
The Argentine investigation remains ongoing, with authorities continuing to review evidence and determine the full circumstances surrounding the flight.
