A 22-year-old student pilot was forced to take sole control of a small aircraft and land it safely on July 4, 2026, after her flight instructor opened the cabin door and jumped to his death mid-flight over Toledo, a small town south of Córdoba, Argentina. Leandro Andrés Bertazzo, 42, a qualified commercial pilot and instructor at the Flying Parrot Flight School in Córdoba, exited a two-seat Cessna C-150 while airborne, and his body was later recovered from a nearby field. The Federal Justice of Córdoba is now investigating the incident, which has stunned Argentina’s aviation community.
Instructor Exits Aircraft Mid-Flight
The student, whose identity has not been publicly disclosed, had taken off with Bertazzo from Coronel Olmedo Airport in Córdoba province for what was intended to be a routine training flight. At around 6 p.m. local time, at an altitude of roughly 820 feet (250 meters), Bertazzo turned to his student, told her she knew what to do and to keep moving forward, then methodically removed his headset, set aside his mobile phone, unfastened his seatbelt, and pushed open the cabin door. According to the student, opening the door mid-flight was a significant physical feat, as air pressure makes it extremely difficult to do so under normal conditions. He then jumped.
She initially believed Bertazzo may have deployed a parachute, but she quickly realized he had not. She immediately radioed for help, followed emergency procedures, and guided the undamaged Cessna back to the airfield entirely on her own — an extraordinary accomplishment given that, while she held a pilot’s license, she had only limited flight hours.
School Director Praises Student’s Composure
Álvarez received the distress alert from the student and immediately organized a search with colleagues. Within a quarter of an hour, they found Bertazzo’s remains in a field, where first responders pronounced him dead.
“She was very shaken, but with complete professionalism, she flew the plane to the airfield and made a perfect landing,” Álvarez said. He called her actions “very clear, decisive, mature and professional.”
Álvarez, who described Bertazzo as a close friend, said the instructor had arrived at work that day in seemingly normal spirits. He greeted colleagues warmly as usual, though one detail stood out in retrospect: instead of driving his own car, Bertazzo had asked a student to pick him up from the home he shared with his parents in a Córdoba neighborhood. Álvarez recalled the morning as unremarkable, with conversation flowing easily and no visible signs of distress.
No Warning Signs Detected Before the Flight
Colleagues consistently described Bertazzo as cheerful, professional, and impeccably presented. He had trained at the flight school for roughly a decade before joining its staff some four years ago. He was also believed to have previously flown commercially in Chile and had been pursuing a position with a major airline at the time of his death. That same morning, he had completed an earlier re-training flight with a fellow licensed pilot — a session that passed without incident.
Flight school staff said none of Bertazzo’s colleagues had noticed anything concerning during the routine physical and mental health evaluations that Argentine aviation regulations require every six months. Local reports indicated, however, that Bertazzo had received neuropsychiatric treatment, though only close family members were aware of this before the tragedy.
Investigation Underway Into Circumstances of Death
In the immediate aftermath, investigators examined whether a mechanical fault — specifically involving a hatch or one of the aircraft’s safety systems — might have played a role in Bertazzo’s exit from the plane. However, witness accounts have since pointed toward a deliberate act. Authorities are examining the plane’s service history, records kept by the flight school, and all in-flight radio communications that were captured during the incident.
Jurisdiction over the case has shifted since the investigation began: a Río Segundo provincial prosecutor initially handled the matter as a possible case of negligent homicide before declaring herself without competent authority, and the case has since been referred to federal prosecutor Carlos Gonella, who is overseeing federal cases in Córdoba during the current judicial recess. The Cessna has been placed in judicial custody, and Argentina’s Transportation Safety Board has joined the Federal Justice in examining the circumstances of Bertazzo’s death.
The local aviation community has been left deeply unsettled by the incident, with those who knew Bertazzo expressing disbelief that a man remembered as warm, dedicated, and always smiling could have come to such an end.
If you or someone you know is struggling with suicidal thoughts, contact the 988 Suicide and Crisis Lifeline by calling or texting 988.
