How High Can I Fly After Scuba Diving?

[certifiedsnorkermaster]

Im trying to find some good information on how high I can fly after a dive. I am aware of the standard rules relating to 8k ft pressure altitude in a pressurised aircraft, but it does not go into much details for smaller planes. Im wondering if it is possible stay at a lower altitude (like 3-5k ft) and be safe.

Basically I am looking to fly to my destination in the morning, enjoy a dive or two and fly back home in the evening.

Any information or advice is appreciated.

 

[JBFG]

I personally wouldn't.
How deep are your dives going to be?

 

[tursiops]

At 3-5k feet, you could plan/execute the dive as if it were at 3-5k feet, so use altitude diving rules and procedures. Summarizing, you'd assume the dive is deeper than it actually is, come up slower, and use longer surface intervals. Your tables/computer would be based on the entire day being at "3-5k feet" including the flight there, the dives, and the flight home, so you wouldn't really be changing anything when you fly home. But I'm not going to teach you how to do altitude diving over the internet!

 

[ScubaJill]

Im trying to find some good information on how high I can fly after a dive. I am aware of the standard rules relating to 8k ft pressure altitude in a pressurised aircraft, but it does not go into much details for smaller planes. Im wondering if it is possible stay at a lower altitude (like 3-5k ft) and be safe.

Basically I am looking to fly to my destination in the morning, enjoy a dive or two and fly back home in the evening.

Any information or advice is appreciated.

I flew roundtrip from St. Maarten to Saba and the return flight was the same day as three dives which ranged from 116 to 30 feet. The airplane's altitude doesn't exceed 2000-2500 feet. This is a big selling point to get divers over to Saba just for the day. Saba's Diving - Concerning Altitude and the Alert Diver article mentioned on the Sea Saba site: AlertDiver_Fall2013

 

[TMHeimer]

Though I'm not Altitude certified, tursiops is surely correct. Whether you get Alt. cert. or not, you would have to know for sure what the plane's altitude would be before you board.

 

[certifiedsnorkermaster]

I flew roundtrip from St. Maarten to Saba and the return flight was the same day as three dives which ranged from 116 to 30 feet. The airplane doesn't exceed 2000-2500 feet. This is a big selling point to get divers over to Saba just for the day. Saba's Diving - Concerning Altitude and the Alert Diver article mentioned on the Sea Saba site: AlertDiver_Fall2013

Good to know. Im planning on waiting 6-8 hours before flying back and will probably keep my 1.3 hour flight at 2000 ft.

 

[BoltSnap]

What if there is an issue with the weather during the flight and the plane had to go higher?

 

[HowardE]

http://www.ndc.noaa.gov/pdfs/AscentToAltitudeTable.pdf

Pressure groups listed are from NOAA air tables, but you get the idea.

 

[John A Lewis]

What if there is an issue with the weather during the flight and the plane had to go higher?

My question as well. However, it seems to me that if this is an issue a call to DAN wouldn't be a bad thing to do.

 

[BoltSnap]

My question as well. However, it seems to me that if this is an issue a call to DAN wouldn't be a bad thing to do.

The same question was posed some years ago during a dive related convention and the answer was "don't do it" since pilots' reaction is to go higher in altitude when there is an issue with the weather.