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Flight Instructor Falls From Training Plane in Córdoba as Student Performs Emergency Landing

Federal judges have seized the aircraft and opened a technical and judicial inquiry to determine how the instructor left the Cessna and to rule out mechanical, procedural or medical causes.

Overview

  • A Cessna C-150 on a routine training sortie left the Coronel Olmedo aerodrome and while over a rural area near Toledo the instructor exited the aircraft and later was found dead in a nearby field.
  • The 22-year-old student stayed at the controls, sent a message reporting the incident and landed the plane without injury, and her testimony has been recorded as a central piece of evidence.
  • The victim was identified as 42-year-old Leandro Andrés Bertazzo, a long-time trainee and instructor at Flying Parrot Córdoba who had about four years as an instructor and roughly a decade in pilot training.
  • Justice Federal of Córdoba has taken custody of the airplane for forensic peritajes and is examining multiple hypotheses, including a mechanical failure of a door or latch, a problem during instruction and the possibility of intentional self-harm, with no conclusion yet.
  • Flying Parrot Córdoba temporarily suspended activity and the local aviation community is in shock as investigators collect cockpit communications, technical inspections and witness statements before issuing findings.