22-year-old Rosario, a student pilot, was on a routine training flight in a Cessna C-150 over the countryside near Córdoba, Argentina, with her instructor, 42-year-old Leandro Andrés Bertazzo.
Then, mid-flight, Bertazzo removed his headset, arranged his belongings, and unbuckled his seatbelt. He turned to his student and said, “you know what to do.” Then he jumped.
She kept her composure, reached for the radio, and contacted her flight school on the ground. Instructors there talked her through it. She then brought the plane down herself, and by all accounts made a perfect landing.
The flight school director confirmed she had handled the situation with extraordinary calm given the circumstances, describing her landing as flawless. She was shaken but unharmed.
Bertazzo’s body was found in a field roughly 15 to 20 minutes later. His father told local media he had been going through a very difficult period and had recently consulted a psychiatric clinic.
Her Flight Instructor Suddenly Left the Plane Mid-Air — The 22-Year-Old Student Landed It Alone
