Student Pilot Landed a Plane Alone After Her Instructor Jumped to His Death Mid-Flight

The case centers on a midair emergency in Argentina on July 4, when a student pilot landed alone after her instructor jumped to his death. Rosario, a 22-year-old student, took off from Coronel Olmedo Airport for a routine training flight and brought the Cessna 150 down safely after what TN and CNN affiliate reports described as the instructor’s sudden exit mid-flight. The aircraft was approximately 850 feet in the air over Toledo when Leandro Andrés Bertazzo, 42, told Rosario to continue, removed his headset, unfastened his seatbelt, opened the door, and jumped. Bertazzo’s body was recovered about 20 minutes later from a nearby field. Rosario radioed the airport to report the incident and landed without damage, despite having only a few hours of flight experience. Eduardo Álvarez, director of Flying Parrot Córdoba, said the school had no prior indication Bertazzo was struggling, and that Rosario remained professional during the landing. Argentine prosecutors have launched an investigation.