How High Can I Fly After Scuba Diving?

[John A Lewis]

The same question was posed some years ago during a dive related convention and the answer was "don't do it" since pilots' reaction is to go higher in altitude when there is an issue with the weather.

From a personal standpoint, I would agree, since it's extremely rare to be hurt when erring on the side of caution. But, since I am just a guy on the internet it's better if they get the info from an unimpeachable source.

 

[Altamira]

Good to know. Im planning on waiting 6-8 hours before flying back and will probably keep my 1.3 hour flight at 2000 ft.

If you think you can guarantee what altitude you will be at for the entirety of a 1.3 hour, I think you are not aware of all the problems that can pop up that could force a climb to higher altitude. But hey, it's your body.

 

[Reku]

all of this sounds super sketch to me. I would NEVER dive and then fly in the same day. I don't care how good my math is.

 

[ScubaJill]

Good to know. Im planning on waiting 6-8 hours before flying back and will probably keep my 1.3 hour flight at 2000 ft.

I will say that the flight between St. Maarten and Saba lasted all of 12 minutes.

 

[Crowley]

The flying-after-diving recommendation is to avoid direct ascent to an altitude greater than 600 metres (just under 2,000 ft) after diving. If you're flying in an unpressurised aircraft (which I assume from the OP that you will be either flying - or a passenger in - your own light aircraft) then as long as you keep it under that height then the risks are minimal. Airline cabin pressure is equivalent to around 1,800 - 2,400 metres and this is very much a problem. If it helps, back when I was working in Egypt we would travel from Sharm to Dahab passing through an 800m high mountain range, and to play it safe we took a 3 hour surface interval before travelling home (after two dives), and I've taken a low-level flight over the Great Barrier Reef after two morning dives on a liveaboard - which was, as a previous poster suggested n a different location, part of the overall holiday package.

So - 600m/2000ft is the limit in an unpressurised aircraft (or driving a car from sea level to high ground), and a 6 hour surface interval should be fine. For pressurised cabins then 12 hours for a single dive / 18 for multiple is the rule, 24 hours always better. As others have pointed out, if you are flying an unpressurised craft and have to ascend to avoid a weather system then may cause problems, but one assumes that if you're taking a low level flight then either you, or the pilot, have had a look at the radar beforehand.

Hope that helps,

Cheers

C.

 

[tphelps]

Im trying to find some good information on how high I can fly after a dive. I am aware of the standard rules relating to 8k ft pressure altitude in a pressurised aircraft, but it does not go into much details for smaller planes. Im wondering if it is possible stay at a lower altitude (like 3-5k ft) and be safe.

Aloha,

Going to elevation after diving is something we routinely encounter on Hawai'i Island. If driving from one side of the island to the other to dive (i.e. Hilo to Kona), we have to return via Waimea (~3,000ft elevation). As a diver/instructor for the University of Hawai'i at Hilo, we have two protocols for this:

1) For our Campus Recreation Department (PADI facility), we must wait until we have an ending "B" pressure group (RDP table) before ascending to elevation.
2) For the UH Diving Safety Program, we must wait until we are "D" divers (NAUI tables) before ascending to elevation.

To my knowledge we have not had any DCI-related issues following either of these protocols.

 

[tursiops]

1) For our Campus Recreation Department (PADI facility), we must wait until we have an ending "B" pressure group (RDP table) before ascending to elevation.
2) For the UH Diving Safety Program, we must wait until we are "D" divers (NAUI tables) before ascending to elevation.

Do you require your divers to use tables?
If they use computers, how do they use these protocols?

 

[Mr Carcharodon]

To get a handle on flying after diving it is good to start to get altitude and depth in the same units. So you can reference back to your diving experience using depth units of feet (or meters) of sea water may make sense. 2000 feet of altitude above sea level is just a few feet of sea water. Nearly all tables work in increments of 10 fsw. Should you care about 2 or 3 fsw or is it in the noise? What if you ascend to 5000 feet above sea level after 4 hours? Then you need to calculate. The DAN recommendations are really intended to envelope people diving to the edge of NDLs. That may, or may not, apply to your dives.

 

[Basking Ridge Diver]

2000 feet of altitude above sea level is just a few feet of sea water. Nearly all tables work in increments of 10 fsw. Should you care about 2 or 3 fsw or is it in the noise?

Do you even dive? Or are you just being silly?

 

[tursiops]

Do you even dive? Or are you just being silly?

Actually, he is not being silly; the few feet he mentions is the whole issue in altitude diving. But where he errs, I think, is in suggesting to ignore it. It is not a big deal, but it adds up, and adds in a detrimental way.