Leandro Bertazzo is reported to have fallen to his death from the plane as he was training a student (Picture: JamPress)

A student pilot has spoken of how she was forced to land a plane alone after her instructor ‘jumped to his death from the cockpit’ midway through the flight.

The unnamed 22-year-old had been training with her instructor,42-year-old Leandro Bertazzo,over Toledo,Argentina,on July 4,when he reportedly opened the window of the Cessna C150 plane and jumped.

The student’s account of the incident states that she watched Bertazzo plunge to his death. While she previously thought he had deployed a parachute she soon realised that was not the case.

Despite witnessing such a harrowing moment — and having only limited experience in flying — the student raised the alarm before landing the plane safely and unaided at Coronel Olmedo Airport,which is based in Cordoba and commonly used by flight schools for training pilots.

Reports said Mr Bertazzo’s body was found in a nearby field 20 minutes later.

The unnamed student had to land the Cessna C-150 alone (Picture: JamPress)

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Start your day informed with Metro's News Updates newsletter or get Breaking News alerts the moment it happens.Eduardo Alvarez,director of flight school Flying Parrot Cordoba,where Mr Bertazzo worked as an instructor,revealed details of his conversation with the student after the incident.Speaking to Argentinian media he explained that she told him he had ‘jumped’,adding: ‘[She said] he took his headphones off,arranged his belongings including his mobile phone,took his seatbelt off,opened the door which is very difficult to open and jumped out.’‘She sent a message informing about the situation and proceeded to return to the runway to land,’ he added,saying the student,who had a pilot’s licence but few flying hours under her belt,had been ‘very clear,decisive,mature and professional’.Mr Bertazzo had worked as a commercial pilot in Chile (Picture: JamPress)‘She was very shaken,but with complete professionalism she flew the plane to the airfield and made a perfect landing,’ he added.It’s also been reported that at one point during the flight Mr Bertazzo told her: ‘You know what to do,keep moving forward.’Mr Alvarez went on to describe him as someone who was ‘always smiling’,saying that his death had come completely out of the blue.His body was found in a nearby field 20 minutes after the plane landed (Picture: JamPress)‘He took this tragic decision on board a plane with a person by his side,’ he said.‘There’s no way to think about it or understand it,but the human mind is so complex,so treacherous. That’s why what happened,happened.’An investigation into the instructor’s death is ongoing with officials saying the circumstances surrounding the accident are so unusual they are unable to explain how it might have happened.Investigators are looking into the circumstances surrounding the death (Picture: JamPress)One line of inquiry being followed is whether a mechanical failure relating to a hatch or one of the plane’s safety systems occurred,with the craft and the flight school documentation being studied,along with the communications maintained while the plane was airborne.Local reports have said Mr Bertazzo,who described himself as a former commercial pilot in Chile,had undergone neuropsychiatric treatment.However,only close family members were said to be aware of this before his tragic death occurred.