"Carry on": Flight instructor jumps to death from aircraft, leaving student to land it alone

A routine flying lesson in Argentina ended in tragedy after a flight instructor reportedly jumped out of a training aircraft mid-flight, leaving his student alone in the cockpit to land the plane herself.The incident took place on Saturday near Toledo in central Argentina. According to local reports, 42-year-old flight instructor Leandro Andrés Bertazzo was conducting a lesson with his 22-year-old student, Rosario, when something completely unexpected happened.Rosario later told investigators that Bertazzo calmly removed his headset and unfastened his seatbelt before turning to her."You know what you have to do. Carry on," he reportedly said.Moments later, he opened the aircraft door and jumped.Despite being left alone and in shock, the student managed to stay in control of the Cessna 150 and landed it safely. The aircraft was not damaged.Eduardo Álvarez, director of the Flying Parrot Córdoba flying school where Bertazzo worked, said no one saw this coming."There were absolutely no signs," he told local media, adding that the instructor had flown with another student earlier the same day and everything had appeared normal.

"He made this tragic decision on board an aircraft with another person by his side," Álvarez said. "It's impossible to understand. The human mind is incredibly complex."Álvarez described Bertazzo as an experienced instructor who had also worked in Chile. He remembered him as someone who was always smiling and well-liked by those around him."He was a beautiful person with a great smile," he said. "We're all shocked that this happened."The director also pointed out that opening the door of a plane while it's flying isn't easy. He compared it to trying to open the door of a car travelling at around 200 kmph because of the force of the air pushing against it.Rosario, meanwhile, has been praised for keeping her composure in an unimaginably difficult situation. Although she was left traumatised by what happened, she was able to bring the aircraft down safely without causing further harm.Authorities are now investigating exactly what happened in the moments leading up to Bertazzo's death. So far, officials have not indicated that there were any warning signs before the flight.The incident has left many in Argentina's aviation community struggling to make sense of what happened. What began as an ordinary training session ended in a loss that few could have imagined - and with a young student forced to do something no trainee ever expects: land an aircraft completely alone after witnessing her instructor jump to his death.If you or someone you know is struggling with thoughts of self-harm or suicide, help is available. In India, you can reach out to helplines such as Aasra (022-2754 6669), Sanjivini (011-24311918), ONE LIFE (78930 78930) or SEVA (09441778290), or speak to a trusted mental health professional.