Why the wait to fly?

[arew+4]

Commercial jets do, but I'm not sure that even the small 6-8-seater planes have them. I wouldn't be surprised if the tiny transport ones at resorts don't.

I don't think they typically or routinely go much above 2,000 feet do they?

 

[tkull]

I know people who fly after a 75+m dive on the same day and are fine, although I don‘t think this is a very smart idea. As said above, if the plane looses cabin pressure at cruising altitude, the pressure drops drastically and even low amounts of remaining nitrogen can be highly problematic.

 

[Altamira]

There are a lot of things you have control over in life. What happens to you as a passenger on an airplane is not one of them. As a retired Air Force and Airline Pilot, I never consider getting on a plane with less than 18 hours, and preferably 24, hours from my last dive. Maybe that is just me being cautious, but it is backed up by 34 years of flying jet aircraft at altitudes from 100 feet above ground to 50,000+ feet, and am very familiar with what can go wrong in the air.

 

[PR_SMITH]

I always wait a minimum of 24 hours before flying. I've been diving for 15 years, and I'd like to reach another 15.

 

[Kendall Raine]

I have to disagree as a practical matter. The climb indicator on common commercial jets (e.g., MD80) tops out at 6000 ft/min. That is a water equivalent rate of 6.6 ft/min, which is well under the 30 ft/min ascent rate we feel is safe for diving.

I will concede that ascent rate plays a tiny role in that the inert tissue pressure won't appreciably decrease during the climb time of an airplane. However, the primary concern is whether the ambient pressure drops significantly lower than that of your tissues.

Fair enough. I see your point. An issue v the issue might have been better phrasing. I agree it's both and for a normal commercial aircraft ascent the tissue gas pressure differential probably matters more. That said, pilots, all of whose tissues are saturated at sea level, do sometimes sustain decompression sickness during explosive decompression which would not have happened had they decompressed more slowly (like fighter pilots breathing 100%). Obviously, this would be worse for supersaturated tissues. That said, if there is explosive decompression at cruise altitude decompression sickness is the least of the problems.

 

[Whitrzac]

Dan updates their study on this every few years, based on actual research and peoples experiences. Idk what the current recommendation is off thr top of my head

 

[inquis]

if the plane looses cabin pressure at cruising altitude, the pressure drops drastically and even low amounts of remaining nitrogen can be highly problematic.

A NON-diver on a plane departing sea level that loses cabin pressure when reaching 30,000 ft will have a GF99 over 180%. It would be an issue for anyone.

 

[rjack321]

Commercial jets do, but I'm not sure that even the small 6-8-seater planes have them. I wouldn't be surprised if the tiny transport ones at resorts don't.

Not all commercial flights are in fully pressurized to 8,000ft cabins. The turboprops flying to smaller regional airports in the Rockies are pressurized to about 12,000ft. The difference is marginally noticable since nobody is exercising.

 

[kaylee_ann]

A NON-diver on a plane departing sea level that loses cabin pressure when reaching 30,000 ft will have a GF99 over 180%. It would be an issue for anyone.

new fear unlocked...
nah, I know it's super rare. but just imagining it for a diver who already is saturated above normal sea level N2 saturation makes me cringe

 

[kaylee_ann]

Dan updates their study on this every few years, based on actual research and peoples experiences. Idk what the current recommendation is off thr top of my head

according to their website, for one no-deco stop dive it's 12 hours. Multi-day or repetitive dives would be 18, and a decompression dive is 24 hours. I wonder if multiple decompression dives requires a longer wait time, and how to figure out how much time it is.
Flying After Diving direct link in case I got something wrong
eta- it says this pertains to flights at altitudes between 2-8,000 feet