Flying with your gear... & spare air?

[DandyDon]

Fourseventeen I doubt that you have any say in what your crew carries as department issue. Maybe after you become a more experienced diver you can show them some facts but they probly wouldn't listen to you now. Just don't buy into that mistake for your personal plans. A SA has about the equivalent of 100psi of a standard 80 cf tank, just barely enough to get you into trouble. And if you use it to go down, then hold your breath on ascent - I doubt you'd live. The SA company must have managed some interesting contracts, but they are dangerous.

My understanding on Sudafed and other decongestants from my dive training was that you shouldn't take them because if they wear off while you are diving, you are in the hurt locker bad.

Yeah, but ask someone who can't dive without them. Just take enough that they don't wear off, maybe the extended release.

 

[Fourseventeen]

Very good info guys thank you. No I dont have any say in what they issue or purchase. Again, I am not part of our swift water or dive team, I am only certified for land based. Of coarse if I am to get into any type of spare air system it would be something I would practice with....just like a new pistol or rifle. I wont just buy it, and not use it until an incident. I was looking into spare air for the fact of that is what I am use to seeing people training with and carrying as part of their load out gear. And please keep in mind...the only situation I could see myself ever using it would be in irrigation ditches that are at most about 6' deep. It would be just to buy enough time to cut a seatbelt and pull someone out. I have been looking into the idea more and more since we recently had a situation with a roll over into one of these irrigation canals and 2 of our Deputies dove in and couldnt save the person from this vehicle. The current in these canals is VERY minimal...just murky slow moving water. We have a great water rescue team but they are on call so by the time they were to arrive at a scene like this is far to late.

 

[vladimir]

I do know someone who does and in fact is the guy they call in when some yuppie gets tossed out of a whitewater raft and the body gets stuck up under a rock.

How about your salt-of-the-earth, blue-collar guys, Jim? Do they call in somebody else to fish them out? Or do they not go whitewater rafting? Or maybe they don't fall out of the rafts? Or maybe they just leave their bodies in the river?

 

[BarrelRoll]

Very good info guys thank you. No I dont have any say in what they issue or purchase. Again, I am not part of our swift water or dive team, I am only certified for land based. Of coarse if I am to get into any type of spare air system it would be something I would practice with....just like a new pistol or rifle. I wont just buy it, and not use it until an incident. I was looking into spare air for the fact of that is what I am use to seeing people training with and carrying as part of their load out gear. And please keep in mind...the only situation I could see myself ever using it would be in irrigation ditches that are at most about 6' deep. It would be just to buy enough time to cut a seatbelt and pull someone out. I have been looking into the idea more and more since we recently had a situation with a roll over into one of these irrigation canals and 2 of our Deputies dove in and couldnt save the person from this vehicle. The current in these canals is VERY minimal...just murky slow moving water. We have a great water rescue team but they are on call so by the time they were to arrive at a scene like this is far to late.

The applications you're talking about are good ones for spare air, the guys around here are just hyper sensitive to the subject because of bad general knowledge on the product. It's one of those deals where common sense seems counter-intuitive to reality, so people are quick to stomp anything relating to it.

How about your salt-of-the-earth, blue-collar guys, Jim? Do they call in somebody else to fish them out? Or do they not go whitewater rafting? Or maybe they don't fall out of the rafts? Or maybe they just leave their bodies in the river?