A shocked 22-year-old student pilot was forced to land a plan by herself after the instructor who was teaching her reportedly jumped to his death mid-flight in Argentina.

The tragedy occurred in the town of Toledo, with the local federal prosecutor’s office confirming it was investigating the death of the flight instructor, Leandro Andrés Bertazzo, and that the aircraft involved – a Cessna 150G – had been “taken into police custody”.

Bertazzo worked at the Flying Parrot Córdoba flying school and the student, who has been named only as Rosario, was his second training flight of the day.

The school’s director Eduardo Álvarez described the 42-year-old as a friend – “a beautiful person with a great smile” – and said there had been no indication of what he was planning.

“He made this tragic decision on board an aircraft with another person by his side,” Álvarez told CNN affiliate TN.

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

Álvarez said Rosario was “totally in shock” after landing the plane, but was able to recount what had happened.

She explained that Bertazzo had told her, “You know what you have to do – carry on”, before removing his seatbelt, opening the door of the plane and jumping out.

“She thought he had parachuted out, but then she realised he hadn’t,” Álvarez told TN, going on to explain that Rosario managed to successfully land the plane without any damage.

Bertazzo has been described as an experienced instructor who had worked at the training school for a decade and also been a commercial pilot.

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