Advanced Open Water Disappointment

[tursiops]

I was going to report it to PADI and was discussing with some other diving mentors and they said don't bother, PADI won't do anything about it so I didn't. After learning more about the organization realized they were likely correct. I still think about reporting it from time to time though.

It is worth a try. The more crap instructors don't get called on, the more crap that happens.

 

[Forbin's Descent]

It is worth a try. The more crap instructors don't get called on, the more crap that happens.

I was such a newb then I didn't know what to do. Maybe I should now. They may be scrutinizing these types of things even closer after that dry suit death incident. And I am not the only one from that shop with type of experience. There were many more training before and after me getting the same treatment and just met two more folks recently with similar experiences.

 

[Racer_X]

So you are saying that 5 days of Fundies beats 5h of AOW. Unnhh, yes.

Out of what I wrote, that's all you got? <sigh> One more reason to go back to lurking.

 

[tursiops]

Out of what I wrote, that's all you got? <sigh> One more reason to go back to lurking.

Sure, I got more out of your post than that. That's what I chose to comment on.

 

[robotRevenge]

I recently got my AOW so I wanted to just add some opinions based on my experience.
I managed to find a shop that charged a minimal rate beyond the PADI fees in addition to a multiday dive package so cost wasn't crazy.
The actual written section is straightforward, and informative. Most of it didn't feel all that critical (see Fish ID) and some things like boat diver are so standard it seems silly to even mention.

The training dives weren't anything special, but they do reinforce some skills and if you have a decent instructor, there's at least some useful takeaways, although probably not loads you couldn't figure out by yourself in a pool. Personally I practiced with my kit a fair amount so I didn't notice loads.

However... on my recent week trip to the Caribbean, I noticed that nearly every other diver off the boat had, lets say areas for improvement. Some were pretty minor, but some clearly could have benefited from some 1 on 1 instruction for trim and buoyancy, situational awareness etc. Most were good enough, but a few were properly oblivious, and clearly had either forgotten or ignored all the technically boring things AOW repeats. I'm not particular surprised to hear some shops going light / skipping the training, because wherever these people got certified certainly did the same.

Last, my dive buddy had certs from both SSI and PADI, and had a strong preference for SSI based on the shop taking things a bit more thoroughly. Just a thought.

 

[Twiny]

AOW course might be really beneficial if the diving instructor is more an instructor than a diver (probability very low) and his aim is not to just do the minimum requirements such as coulour comparison at depth...He will use the 5 dives to bring his divers to the next level in terms of effortless flat trim, propulsion with frog kick, breathing TK, ...
And actually in many cases after assessing his divers, he simply has to reteach/redo all OW skills ... A good way to promote the AOW course is by considering it as 5 mores dives under the supervision of a (diving) instructor

I recently got my AOW so I wanted to just add some opinions based on my experience.
I managed to find a shop that charged a minimal rate beyond the PADI fees in addition to a multiday dive package so cost wasn't crazy.
The actual written section is straightforward, and informative. Most of it didn't feel all that critical (see Fish ID) and some things like boat diver are so standard it seems silly to even mention.

The training dives weren't anything special, but they do reinforce some skills and if you have a decent instructor, there's at least some useful takeaways, although probably not loads you couldn't figure out by yourself in a pool. Personally I practiced with my kit a fair amount so I didn't notice loads.

However... on my recent week trip to the Caribbean, I noticed that nearly every other diver off the boat had, lets say areas for improvement. Some were pretty minor, but some clearly could have benefited from some 1 on 1 instruction for trim and buoyancy, situational awareness etc. Most were good enough, but a few were properly oblivious, and clearly had either forgotten or ignored all the technically boring things AOW repeats. I'm not particular surprised to hear some shops going light / skipping the training, because wherever these people got certified certainly did the same.

Last, my dive buddy had certs from both SSI and PADI, and had a strong preference for SSI based on the shop taking things a bit more thoroughly. Just a thought.

Giving a preference to SSI or PADI or whoever is nonsense, what matters for a given course is the instructor and then the dive sites (not too easy for AOW is better)
Wish you happy bubbles

 

[Sebs]

Then why the heck is it so commonly required?

Is AOW required or just the "deep" aspect of AOW though? My understanding AOW is just an easy way to package a "semi-deep" cert with a bunch of other ****.

 

[kaylee_ann]

3. Peak Performance Buoyancy (which can be done by reading about proper weighting techniques and practicing) - net value is practice with a little coaching - 30 min or so.

So, a relatively high amount of new divers generally take a while to really get comfortable with buoyancy. Now if their OW instructor has them nail it, great, they don't need a whole class to refine it further. Just diving with a safety stop thrown in is practice enough. If not, a class specializing in buoyancy could greatly benefit them (if the instructor teaches it well).

 

[kaylee_ann]

Then why the heck is it so commonly required?

I always wondered that with technical diving. Probably because you can dive deeper and use nitrox, if I had to guess.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

It's commonly required as a hedge against liability. It allows operators to go to the sites the divers, in theory, have the training and experience for. Otherwise if someone goes on a 90 ft dive and runs out of air and makes a rapid ascent and gets bent, they will not take responsibility for that. They will sue the operator for even taking them to a site where going to that depth is possible.
The aow card can be used by the operator to point to the diver and say, " not our fault. They have a card that says they know how to plan and execute the dive safely. "
That's why it's required.