Toledo, Argentina: Pilot Leandro Andrés Bertazzo jumps out of plane mid-flight, leaves student to land

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A flying student has been left in “complete shock” after her instructor reportedly jumped out of a plane mid-flight.

On July 4, Leandro Andrés Bertazzo, an instructor at Argentina’s Flying Parrot Córdoba flying school, was teaching a 22-year-old student to fly when the lesson went horribly wrong.

Argentinian outlet La Nacion reported that the student, only named as Rosario, said that Mr Bertazzo turned to her and said “You know what you have to do, carry on” before doing the unthinkable.

He then took off his headphones, stowed his mobile phone, and sorted his belongings.

Afterwards, the instructor unfastened his seatbelt, opened the door of the plane, and fell from a height of about 250 metres over the area of Toledo.

Rosario was able to land the aircraft safely after notifying air traffic control of the incident.

It is understood that the 22-year-old already had her flying licence but needed to complete her flight hours.

After landing, Mr Bertazzo’s colleagues joined police to search for the 42-year-old, who was quickly located and declared dead.

Flying Parrot Córdoba flying school director Eduardo Álvarez told La Nacion that nothing seemed out of character on the day of the incident.

“That day, we saw Leandro like any other,” he said in a translated statement.

“He arrived cheerful, kissing everyone as usual.

“The only thing that stood out was that, instead of coming in his own car as usual, he had asked a student to pick him up at the house where he lived with his parents in a neighbourhood in the city of Córdoba.

“They were chatting away, and everything seemed fine.”

The man, who was single and without kids, was an experienced pilot.

When his parents were informed of what happened, his father reportedly said that Mr Bertazzo was going through “a rough patch” and had recently visited a psychiatric clinic.

Mr Álvarez said no one at the school was aware of this, adding that flights are suspended if there’s any condition which could impact a pilot’s ability to fly.

“We are all shocked,” he said.

Rosario was Mr Bertazzo’s second student of the day, according to CNN afilliate TN, and the first flight taking place without incident.

“He made this tragic decision on board an aircraft with another person by his side,” Mr Álvarez told the outlet.

“It’s impossible to think about it or understand it, but the human mind is so complex.”

He added that opening the door of a plane mid-air was extremely difficult, likening it to doing so in a car travelling at 200 kilometres per hour.

Rosario, unsurprisingly, was described as being in “complete shock”.

The incident is now under investigation by authorities.

Lifeline: 13 11 14.