Why don't we emphasize cesa more??

[H2Andy]

You are, of course, correct CESA is "an act of last resort". Something that should be practiced.

agreed ... proportional to its likelihood of happening, which is almost nil

so ... spend 90% of your time practicing gas planning, awareness, good buddy skills, etc.
(the things that will keep you from a fast ascent) and spend the rest 10% practicing CESA for that dive when the sh..t hits the fan

that will have the added advantage of concentrating the bulk of your time practicing skills which will reduce your likelihood of a CESA to near zero, and thus you probably will never have to do a CESA anyway

 

[lamont]

So, how do you practice a CESA inside a cave or a wreck?

 

[H2Andy]

CESA is useless for overhead diving (and next to useless in OW)

but in OW, you do have the surface as an ultimate resort ... might as well play all your cards, and that's one of them

 

[mdb]

agreed ... proportional to its likelihood of happening, which is almost nil

so ... spend 90% of your time practicing gas planning, awareness, good buddy skills, etc.
(the things that will keep you from a fast ascent) and spend the rest 10% practicing CESA for that dive when the sh..t hits the fan

that will have the added advantage of concentrating the bulk of your time practicing skills which will reduce your likelihood of a CESA to near zero, and thus you probably will never have to do a CESA anyway

I fully agree-except for buddy skills, i much prefer solo.

Gas planning, etc. I continue to work on. This forum has good info on all that.

 

[caseybird]

Okay, when was the last time a commercial jumbo jet ran out of fuel in mid air?

[WIKI]http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Avianca_Flight_52[/WIKI]

Well, it happens. But leaving aviation aside, I think the sense of the board is:
OOA is bad.
CESA is bad.
OOA shouldn't happen.
Some say:
If OOA does happen, CESA is a bad idea. An OOA diver must go to redundant or donor air.
Others say:
If OOA happens, alternate air might not be available, so CESA should be taught as a last option.
I Think:
If OOA happens and the diver can't get alternate air FOR ANY REASON, the diver will bolt up no matter what the diver is trained to do. Therefore, some CESA training is better than none.

The comments made about gas training are valid. Is there any agency that requires gas training for open water cert? Publishing a chart of rock bottom pressures for a few common tanks can't be that hard.

 

[mdb]

So, how do you practice a CESA inside a cave or a wreck?

When was the last time you were in a cave or wreck? Maybe never? In any case, most divers would benefit IMHO with having one more self rescue skill.

 

[Adobo]

Now back to the analogy to flying and airplane, so lets take it a bit further - An out of air emergency accent is like a parachute to a pilot. You can have the best training, best aircraft, plan your trip to exacting standards, calculate you fuel and reserves, but still put on a parachute. Why? Because it is an item of last resort.

So you are saying that instead of going to your reserve tanks, you would jump out of the plane?

(My choice would be to go to my buddy and get gas. We always plan our dives so that he has enough to get two divers to the surface and not miss any stops along the way.)

 

[mdb]

So you are saying that instead of going to your reserve tanks, you would jump out of the plane?

(My choice would be to go to my buddy and get gas. We always plan our dives so that he has enough to get two divers to the surface and not miss any stops along the way.)

What if your buddy is not there?

 

[Adobo]

If OOA happens, alternate air might not be available, so CESA should be taught as a last option.

What are the scenarios where alternate or redundant gas is not available? Solo diving without a pony bottle? Insta-buddy on a cattle boat? Same ocean buddies?

These things are self inflicted and are completely avoidable, no?

 

[Adobo]

What if your buddy is not there?

Why is my buddy not there? And how long has my buddy been missing?

Buddy diving basics - check on your buddy early and often. Always stay close enough to each other so you can render assistance. If for some reason, you get separated, do a 360 and search for up to a minute. If you cannot find your buddy, head to the surface.

Isn't this in OW class?

As they say, picking a good buddy is just as important, if not moreso, than any gear choice you might make.