Details surrounding death of USN divers +1 year ago finally released under FOIA

[2cold4california]

How do you know that Atomic will perform better under the same circumstances?

Hey at least it can't perform WORSE under the same circumstances i.e. Kill everyone.

 

[Dr. Lecter]

Hey at least it can't perform WORSE under the same circumstances i.e. Kill everyone.

I'm not sure if what happened was diver error re: failure to breathe an OC reg differently from surface supply/CCR or a flaw in the specific configuration they adopted here (sounds unlikely to be a specific equipment failure given the results of the Navy's testing of both reg sets), but generally speaking you're going to have less chance of free flow/freeze up with an Apeks (dry-sealed diaphragm reg) than you would with an Atomic (piston reg where the environmental seal is just an ambient pressure chamber full of goop).

I love my modded M1s, but I'd pick an Apeks 1st stage over them for heavy use in cold, silty water any day.

 

[Centrals]

Hey at least it can't perform WORSE under the same circumstances i.e. Kill everyone.

How do you know that it won't? Have you done any comparative tests?
And if both of them have similar performances then at least Apeks cost a lot less!

---------- Post added August 7th, 2014 at 02:19 PM ----------

We use several regulators from different manufacturers. Do a google search for the "authorized for military usage" (AMU) list, all approved regulators are on it.

Diving Equipment Authorized for US Navy use(ANU).
www.supsalv.org/pdf/ANU.pdf
I could not find any reference to Apeks 1st or 2nd stage to be used in cold water.
However, it does feature on the following:
www.supsalv.org/pdf/AMUView.pdf

 

[Peter69_56]

Seriously... a guy does EVERYTHING he possibly can to help another while endangering himself and you say it was not courageous?

I can see how some people (who have a very different set of morals than myself) might believe that his actions were stupid (since they resulted in his death), but I am amazed that you can not also see this as an extremely courageous act.

There is no greater love for another than to lay down their life for them

 

[flots am]

How do you know that Atomic will perform better under the same circumstances?

It's impossible to freeze the first stage because it's packed in grease (silicone?) and no water can enter.

No water = no ice.

flots.

 

[oldschoolto]

I love my tried and true CONSHELF XIV, supreme....

Jim...

 

[flots am]

The problem wasn't that they had some brand of regulator instead of some other brand.

The problem was that this was a safe, boring, completely non-critical, completely reschedule-able, commercial dive planned to operate from a barge with surface supplied air and support personnel and a tether and communications, that became two guys on a 150', 0 viz dive with no comms, no redundancy, no support, no tether and no way to safely end the dive.

While death is always a sensitive topic, I can't come up with a single decision made by anybody, that was correct. If you screw up enough, bad things happen.

flots.

 

[Herb-alaska]

, that became two guys on a 150', 0 viz dive with no comms, no redundancy, no support, no tether and no way to safely end the dive.

While death is always a sensitive topic, I can't come up with a single decision made by anybody, that was correct. If you screw up enough, bad things happen.

flots.

A couple of minor corrections if I read the write up correctly. One Diver was was tethered to the surface and the two were tethered together. Comms can and do take place through the tether, they did have a safety stand by that was on the surface and launched however they had to abort the dive due to equipment issues. The second stand by which on my team we call a 90% ( 90% ready to go at all times) was too late. I am not a military person but from my understanding there is not a lot of room to question your superiors. If you are ordered to complete a task you complete the task. I doubt there is room for a lot of discussion.

My problem with this dive is that it was equipped with the wrong gear, had major service related issues with the equipment and had poor leadership from the person who planned the dive. The why this happened i would think originated probably at a position way above the guys on site that day with a CO that did not want to hear about problems and Junior officers that planned a dive poorly and were afraid to tell the CO that we are coming back another day.

The two men that died, as well as the stand by divers that attempted to reach them are hero's in my book. They put risk aside to attempt to save a team member. Had the one who was not trapped cut himself free he would have removed all chance of rescue for the trapped diver as he was the tether line for the trapped diver and in zero viz if the stand by was on the way that diver would be following the tether line down presumably to both divers.

This was a sad event that I hope is used to correct any issues in the system that provides dive support to our country.

 

[Dr. Lecter]

It's impossible to freeze the first stage because it's packed in grease (silicone?) and no water can enter.

No water = no ice.

flots.

As opposed to a dry-sealed diaphram reg? Get serious.

 

[flots am]

As opposed to a dry-sealed diaphram reg? Get serious.

Sorry, I'm too busy to play. Go troll someone else.