Could this help save lives?

[SkipperJohn]

I work near by where that US Air plane went doen in the Hudson River yesterday. It's all the news channels are talking about. I heard one broadcaster say pilots are trained to always think at any moment in a flight: "what if I lost power now, what would I do, where would I land"
What if we did that in SCUBA with air? What if you every few moments thought out "what if I ran out of or had an issue with air now?" would that cause us to stay closer to our buddies, work out clearly if a CESA was the best choce so we didn't have to make that decision under stress? Would it help to desensitize the situation and possibly prevent panic whould it suddenly happen?

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Possibly ... it's basic gas management mentality.

Check out my article ... scroll down to the first sub-heading "Thinking Ahead", and read the second paragraph.

One of the basic mistakes many divers make ... in part due to the way they receive their training ... is to consider how much gas they want to end the dive with, rather than think ahead to how much they will need at any given point in the dive.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[ShakaZulu]

Being a recently certified pilot, I can concur....you play a game with yourself. Where will I land if the engine fails now? After a while, it becomes second nature, you'll know if you had just flown over an area that could be used for a landing. I also do a pre-takeoff briefing to clarify what I will do if I have an engine 1. failure during the takeoff roll, 2. after rotation with runway remaining and 3. after rotation with no runway remaining. That way if something goes wrong, you know what to do without even having to think about it.....I'm sure you can come up with some briefings that apply to diving, like the pre-dive briefing with your buddies?

 

[seaducer]

I work near by where that US Air plane went doen in the Hudson River yesterday. It's all the news channels are talking about. I heard one broadcaster say pilots are trained to always think at any moment in a flight: "what if I lost power now, what would I do, where would I land"
What if we did that in SCUBA with air? What if you every few moments thought out "what if I ran out of or had an issue with air now?" would that cause us to stay closer to our buddies, work out clearly if a CESA was the best choce so we didn't have to make that decision under stress? Would it help to desensitize the situation and possibly prevent panic whould it suddenly happen?

I did this constantly when I first started diving. And again when I returned after taking a few years off.
I visualize all the time when I am out of the water about how I would prefer to handle any number of situations.

When I am diving now, I do occasionally think about how I would deal with a problem, but to be honest I mostly enjoy the dive and monitor my gauges. I think this is a result of having more confidence in my abilities, more knowledge of what I am looking at, and the ability to recognize and deal with the little things as they occur as opposed to being surprised at something along the way.

Most major issues do not happen all at once, they are a series of little things that add up. If you deal with the little things as they occur the major problem never gets any momentum.

 

[Thalassamania]

I work near by where that US Air plane went doen in the Hudson River yesterday. It's all the news channels are talking about. I heard one broadcaster say pilots are trained to always think at any moment in a flight: "what if I lost power now, what would I do, where would I land"

It goes further than that, the instructor and examiner will actually cut your power (always at a miserable time, when there's only one right decision available) and you have to deal with it. I remember, forty years ago I banked too hard and while in a glide ... in fact I'll never forget.

What if we did that in SCUBA with air? What if you every few moments thought out "what if I ran out of or had an issue with air now?" would that cause us to stay closer to our buddies, work out clearly if a CESA was the best choice so we didn't have to make that decision under stress? Would it help to desensitize the situation and possibly prevent panic would it suddenly happen?

That used to be practiced routinely, in diver training, the instructor would sneak up and turn your air off ... you were expected to deal with it, if not the instructor would help you out. That's not done anymore.

 

[RonzoTheGreat]

um ... i have been doing that since i could think about doing it (not the first few dives but certainly every one after i began to understand and was no longer "overwhelmed" at how cool breathing underwater is)

 

[tna9001]

I work near by where that US Air plane went doen in the Hudson River yesterday. It's all the news channels are talking about. I heard one broadcaster say pilots are trained to always think at any moment in a flight: "what if I lost power now, what would I do, where would I land"
What if we did that in SCUBA with air? What if you every few moments thought out "what if I ran out of or had an issue with air now?" would that cause us to stay closer to our buddies, work out clearly if a CESA was the best choce so we didn't have to make that decision under stress? Would it help to desensitize the situation and possibly prevent panic whould it suddenly happen?

Hello, Skipper John.

I'm a novice diver and a retired professional pilot. There are many aspects of standard operating procedures in aviation that are applicable to diving. One great example I can think of right now is current depth and the plan to get to the surface, which is very similar to the takeoff phase in transport category aircraft. Thing is that kind of thinking not addressed in the diving community for new OW divers.

I can tell ya what those US Air guys were thinking as they accelerated down the runway, (there is a reference speed called V1 it changes with many variables) just like: what are you going to do if you don't have air now? Before V1 you try to stop on the runway after V1 your going flying.

Less than 60ft your doing the bubble thing and swimming to the surface, more than 60ft you better find your buddy because you might not make to the surface. Change the depth as you see fit but that example is a much better standard to teach new OW divers than the current PADI one. It's simple, it works and people will remember what to do. And it's likely that if people were taught that they would respect the difference between 100ft and 60ft.

Just like pilots do before V1 stop after V1 go!

Less than xxft blow bubbles and go to the surface more than xxft better have you buddy close or your going to die.

Trouble is when you tell people they might die there less likely to participate. That's the difficult balance.

Tyler

By the way, what the USAIR guys did is like getting a unconscious diver at 150 to the surface with 500psi in you tank with no one getting hurt. Very lucky!

 

[Thalassamania]

I'm sure luck played a role, but I think they manufactured their luck by being properly prepared.

 

[jridg]

By the way, what the USAIR guys did is like getting a unconscious diver at 150 to the surface with 500psi in you tank with no one getting hurt. Very lucky!

I don't necessarily agree - as a Military Aviator we practice ditching several times a year - this guy was an air force guy (I won't hold it against him ) - and CEO of a safety company - these folks had the right pilot for the situation - that's a certainty. Sure, luck plays a role, but superior aviation skills play a far larger role.....

 

[Nemrod]

Flying airplanes and scuba diving really do not share much in common IMO. N