kwinter
Contributor
A lot of people seem to be interested in what might be possible to get away with, like staying on the loop in a complete visual blackout by hearing a solenoid click. And agencies might differ in their teaching of how to do blackout drills. But every CCR course I know of from every agency and every rebreather, from basic mod 1 air dil no deco to advanced trimix and cave has one mantra that is never disputed:
ALWAYS KNOW YOUR PO2.
It is the basic hallmark of CCR diving. So I am incredulous that there would be any agency or any instructor that thinks it is ok to "challenge" a student to maintain pO2 on the loop without being able to monitor it. The skill serves no useful purpose whatsoever.
Open circuit bailout, open loop breathing, or even SCR might be appropriate real-life methods of dealing with this situation. Staying on CCR without being able to monitor pO2 violates the very essence of CCR training.
ALWAYS KNOW YOUR PO2.
It is the basic hallmark of CCR diving. So I am incredulous that there would be any agency or any instructor that thinks it is ok to "challenge" a student to maintain pO2 on the loop without being able to monitor it. The skill serves no useful purpose whatsoever.
Open circuit bailout, open loop breathing, or even SCR might be appropriate real-life methods of dealing with this situation. Staying on CCR without being able to monitor pO2 violates the very essence of CCR training.