A trainee student was forced to land an aircraft after her instructor jumped from the plane during a flight in Argentina. She remained in shock and could only report what happened after making a safe landing.
Incident Details
Leandro Bertazzo, 42, was conducting an instructional flight with a 22-year-old woman when he decided to jump from the Cessna C-150. The student, who already held a private pilot's license, took control of the aircraft after the instructor handed over the controls and threw himself out during the training flight.
Initially, the young woman was confused by the situation, thinking that Bertazzo was using some equipment because she did not immediately understand what was happening. According to Eduardo Álvarez, director of Flying Parrot Córdoba, the student kept repeating the phrase: 'I don't understand why he did this,' maintaining the belief that there would be some explanation or that the instructor would return.
Discovery and Investigation
The Saturday before, after the jump, Bertazzo's body, who identified himself as a former commercial pilot from Chile, was found twenty minutes later in the area indicated by the young woman. The director of the Parrot Cordoba flight school reported that the student mentioned that the pilot had told her that she 'knew what to do' before he 'took off his headphones, arranged his mobile phone, unbuckled his seatbelt, opened the door, and jumped.' Bertazzo had been an instructor for four years.
Additional information indicates that the man had recently started seeking psychiatric help but had not communicated this condition to his workplace, and the company stated that he had never exhibited unusual behavior, which prevented prior suspicion. Currently, the case is under investigation by the Federal Justice of Córdoba.
