Diving and Flying
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The fastest growing recreational sport meets the most popular form of foriegn travel.
As others have said, this is potentially a very complex subject, and becoming more so as Trimix courses become available to the recreational diver.
I do both, at a professional level, although the diving is not as frequent as it used to be.
The CAA/JAA guidelines are that 12 hours should elapse between a shallow dive and flying, whilst the diving organisations (who are more likely to end up in court) say 24 hours.
After a solid two weeks of leading dives in the 12 - 40 metre depth band, plus an occasional forray past 50 metres with friends, my Aladin computer gave me a desat time of 32 hours, with a no fly limitation of 14 hours.
I use the desaturation time rounded up to the nearest 12 hours so in the case above 36 hours before my flight home I will have packed my kit.
You may use Air/Nitrox/Trimix, do deco/non deco dives, use tables or a computer, whatever, I would suggest that you work on the safe side of when your nitrogen loading is ZERO, and if you are serious about your diving then a good computer is invaluable.
As for X ray machines reducing dive computers to scrap ? thats a new one on me, my computer travels the world and shows no ill effects.
More to the point, if you are flying, it should mean that you are completely desaturated.
Ergo the information in the volatile memory is irrelevent.
As others have said, this is potentially a very complex subject, and becoming more so as Trimix courses become available to the recreational diver.
I do both, at a professional level, although the diving is not as frequent as it used to be.
The CAA/JAA guidelines are that 12 hours should elapse between a shallow dive and flying, whilst the diving organisations (who are more likely to end up in court) say 24 hours.
After a solid two weeks of leading dives in the 12 - 40 metre depth band, plus an occasional forray past 50 metres with friends, my Aladin computer gave me a desat time of 32 hours, with a no fly limitation of 14 hours.
I use the desaturation time rounded up to the nearest 12 hours so in the case above 36 hours before my flight home I will have packed my kit.
You may use Air/Nitrox/Trimix, do deco/non deco dives, use tables or a computer, whatever, I would suggest that you work on the safe side of when your nitrogen loading is ZERO, and if you are serious about your diving then a good computer is invaluable.
As for X ray machines reducing dive computers to scrap ? thats a new one on me, my computer travels the world and shows no ill effects.
More to the point, if you are flying, it should mean that you are completely desaturated.
Ergo the information in the volatile memory is irrelevent.
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Diving and flying mix just fine if you understand the rules for both, several thousand hours under water and above have done no harm to me and both my HSE diving medical and Class 1 or in date. Some people are just predisposed to medical problems.
Regards, X-rays and computers- Tosh, X-rays do not effect dive computers.
Taking your computer on an aircraft to watch the display will do you no good either, they are not calibrated for surface use and the resolution for altitude equalisation is based on 300m increments and merely reduces the no stop time and then lengthens the deco time.
Regards flying and diving there is no definative answer for the no fly time and if you choose to ignore the various agencies extremely conservative guidelines then it is a personal choice.
Helium breathing mix dives are a safer bet to fly after than air. Helium is a thinner gas than air and enters and leaves the body rapidly. There is not enough ambient pressure to hold Helium in the body above about 3-6m so if you are going to get a bend you will get it in water on helium, for this reason stops are started deepr on Helium. As an example, from a 140m dive last week my first stop was at 118m. yes that meters not feet.
I regularily fly in the afternoon after diving in the morning and after 23yrs and more than 8,000 dives probably have enough of a statistical base to support the theory.
And for the record yes I did right the book! Anyone who wants to know the ins and outs of bubble seeding, doppler counts and decompression theory PM me and I will be happy to bore you to death.
At the end of the day my advice is if you do not have the understanding of what you have done to your body then follow your training agencies advice and use there guidlines for no fly.
Regards, X-rays and computers- Tosh, X-rays do not effect dive computers.
Taking your computer on an aircraft to watch the display will do you no good either, they are not calibrated for surface use and the resolution for altitude equalisation is based on 300m increments and merely reduces the no stop time and then lengthens the deco time.
Regards flying and diving there is no definative answer for the no fly time and if you choose to ignore the various agencies extremely conservative guidelines then it is a personal choice.
Helium breathing mix dives are a safer bet to fly after than air. Helium is a thinner gas than air and enters and leaves the body rapidly. There is not enough ambient pressure to hold Helium in the body above about 3-6m so if you are going to get a bend you will get it in water on helium, for this reason stops are started deepr on Helium. As an example, from a 140m dive last week my first stop was at 118m. yes that meters not feet.
I regularily fly in the afternoon after diving in the morning and after 23yrs and more than 8,000 dives probably have enough of a statistical base to support the theory.
And for the record yes I did right the book! Anyone who wants to know the ins and outs of bubble seeding, doppler counts and decompression theory PM me and I will be happy to bore you to death.
At the end of the day my advice is if you do not have the understanding of what you have done to your body then follow your training agencies advice and use there guidlines for no fly.
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Join Date: Apr 2004
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Thanks!
With regards to a dive computer, any suggestions as to which I should invest in? (Please bear in mind that I am still a student, and thus am working on a limited budget.) Although I have the greatest respect for PADI dive tables, a computer would make me feel even more comfortable.
Bose-x, did you say 140 meters? Praytell, what were you doing at that depth?
JC
With regards to a dive computer, any suggestions as to which I should invest in? (Please bear in mind that I am still a student, and thus am working on a limited budget.) Although I have the greatest respect for PADI dive tables, a computer would make me feel even more comfortable.
Bose-x, did you say 140 meters? Praytell, what were you doing at that depth?
JC
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VR3 Dive computer is my weapon of choice.
Diving a frigate that was sunk during the Turkish occupation of Cyprus.
140m is an extreme dive but by no means my deepest, I held the world record once for a closed circuit dive at 205m.
PADI dive tables are very good safe and reliable tables don't underistimate them for no stop diving. A computer is a great tool just make sure you understand what it is telling you and why!
Diving a frigate that was sunk during the Turkish occupation of Cyprus.
140m is an extreme dive but by no means my deepest, I held the world record once for a closed circuit dive at 205m.
PADI dive tables are very good safe and reliable tables don't underistimate them for no stop diving. A computer is a great tool just make sure you understand what it is telling you and why!
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Oh, don't worry, I understand what the tables are telling me, and how useful they are, but I would just want to be able to maximize the time I have for diving, since at this point it only happens occasionally.
Mach 3
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Just as an illustration of what you can "get away with", back in 2000, I did 41 "air" dives in 10 days in Bonaire, with ~20 in excess of in 40m, a maximum depth in excess of 70m and maximum dive time of > 100mins.
I'm fascinated by the physiology of decompression but like bose-x suggests, it seems to be down to the individual more often than not and a sensible knowledge of your own limitations.
Often wondered whether the fact that I've been a body-builder in the past and continue to indulge this passion of mine actually predisposes me towards DCI or mitigates against it?
Enjoy.
I'm fascinated by the physiology of decompression but like bose-x suggests, it seems to be down to the individual more often than not and a sensible knowledge of your own limitations.
Often wondered whether the fact that I've been a body-builder in the past and continue to indulge this passion of mine actually predisposes me towards DCI or mitigates against it?
Enjoy.
