AOW Requirements with PADI

[Hawkwood]

John, our CD called that approach "adding value".

 

[DivemasterDennis]

jringold, also bear in mind that busy training facilities that form a class of 2 or more divers for AOW may prescribe the dives done. AT my shop we do deep, navigation, search and recovery, wreck (fortunately we have a plane to dive at our local site) and altitude, because we are at altitude. On the altitude dive in particular, but to some extent on every dive , we do buoyancy work, navigation and task loading. For example, on the wreck dive, though we do not penetrate the wreck, we do string a line while maintaining neutral buoyancy. We also shoot an SMB on one or two dives, from depth, to get the technique down do some for navigation on every dive, even if it is a straight heading in to our shore location at the end of the dive. We cover all the PADI aspects for each dive, but like to add some of the tasks in a controlled, supervised environment. We stress navigation and buoyancy control because those are two skills that define an advance diver. So at least at some training centers you will get some good overall training and lots of skill focus in AOW. I suggest you do that course, and then pursue specialties in which you have an interest, rather than just collecting certs.
DivemasterDennis

 

[jringold]

Thanks Dennis –

To all the instructors – let me run this by you:

Let’s say I’ve never been to your shop before but today I showed up and presented a PADI Adventure C-Card and a PPB C-Card. My log showing that to earn Adventure that I had completed the PPB cert and had adventure qualifying dives for Navigation and Wreck (just pulling two courses at random that look interesting). No cert on Nav or Wreck, just qualifying dives that were used to get Adventure.

Question 1: Would you allow me to complete two dives with you (say Deep and something else) and sign off on AOW?
Question 2: Rather than applying for AOW, let’s say I wanted to do certification on Wreck. Would you count the logged Wreck dive as one of the qualifying dives for Wreck cert? (not that Wreck is my real choice – just picking something to try and understand the dynamics)

Sorry to be so clueless but I’m wanting to map out all the possibilities. I’m certainly interested in Nitrox but since that has nothing directly to do with the certs, I’m leaving that out of the equation.

 

[stuartv]

It's already been mentioned, but other agencies don't have the same requirements. My experience is with SDI. You can do the full Deep specialty without having any other dives or certs other than just OW. I haven't been diving that long, but I have done dives that "require Advanced" with a couple of different dive operators in the Outer Banks of North Carolina and also in Hawaii. Firstly, they generally have never asked to see anything more than the OW card and the Nitrox card. And, two, I believe the full Deep specialty would satisfy them just as much as an AOW card.

I say all that because I did exactly the same thing you proposed. I did not bother with the SDI version of AOW. I just went straight to the full specialties I wanted. I have less than 50 dives total, but 13 of them have been wreck dives. IIRC, I think 8 to 10 of them have been to over 100 feet.

Personally, if I were doing it over again, I would still do the same thing. Take Nitrox right off the bat, so you have that option anywhere you go. And take Deep ASAP. With your PPB, that will give you 3. U/W Nav and U/W Photography would then give you 5 and the option to pay for the AOW card, if you want it. Going that route certainly has not prevented me from doing any of the dives I wanted to do. Doing it that way - and going non-PADI - has simply saved me money.

 

[boulderjohn]

Thanks Dennis –

To all the instructors – let me run this by you:

Let’s say I’ve never been to your shop before but today I showed up and presented a PADI Adventure C-Card and a PPB C-Card. My log showing that to earn Adventure that I had completed the PPB cert and had adventure qualifying dives for Navigation and Wreck (just pulling two courses at random that look interesting). No cert on Nav or Wreck, just qualifying dives that were used to get Adventure.

Question 1: Would you allow me to complete two dives with you (say Deep and something else) and sign off on AOW?
Question 2: Rather than applying for AOW, let’s say I wanted to do certification on Wreck. Would you count the logged Wreck dive as one of the qualifying dives for Wreck cert? (not that Wreck is my real choice – just picking something to try and understand the dynamics)

Sorry to be so clueless but I’m wanting to map out all the possibilities. I’m certainly interested in Nitrox but since that has nothing directly to do with the certs, I’m leaving that out of the equation.

1. Yes
2. Yes

Number One is pretty rare--not many people do the Adventure certification, as was mentioned before. I have never even seen one, let alone upgraded it to AOW. I don't see any reason why it would not be done.

Number two is very common. I do it mostly with the Deep Diver specialty. When a person shows up with AOW and wants to do the Deep Diver specialty, he or she has to have done that first deep dive, so I don't even ask about it. If that person wants to do the wreck specialty, the procedure is the same, except I would check.

 

[RJP]

Question 1: Would you allow me to complete two dives with you (say Deep and something else) and sign off on AOW?

Assuming you are a complete unknown to me and want a PADI AOW, the short answer is "YES, sort of" because a PADI instructor is required to assess a student's skills, comfort, and dive knowledge inwater PRIOR to conducting any open water training activities. Beyond being merely "a PADI requirement" it's just prudent. So you'd need to do at least ONE additional dive before we could conduct the two AOW training dives. So after THREE dives I'd sign off on your AOW.

Question 2: Rather than applying for AOW, let’s say I wanted to do certification on Wreck. Would you count the logged Wreck dive as one of the qualifying dives for Wreck cert? (not that Wreck is my real choice – just picking something to try and understand the dynamics)

Same as above - "YES, sort of." Sure, I'd count the AOW dive... but we'd repeat something very much like it anyway as that would be a good way for me to assess your skills, comfort, and dive knowledge. Assuming I liked what I saw, I'd count your previous dive. If that assessment dive revealed that you needed some work we'd repeat Dive 1 as an actual training dive.

Ultimately, if you trained with me under either question/scenario you laid out above you'd be buying a full day of dive training (question 1) or potentially two full days of dive training (question 2, depending on the specialty as some like Wreck require as many as 4 dives.). Your cost for that day would be the same whether we did one, two, or three dives per day... so you might as well take advantage of our time together and opt to do "more" dives rather than the target minimum.