Is AOW a required prerequisite to do a Divemaster?

[Hartattack]

LOL. He isn't going to answer your question because he can't. He would rather insult those with considerably more experience and training than he has.

And, sadly, all of you are willing to push the limits for those who don't hold the same experience you have. Whatever experience that might be.

 

[boulderjohn]

If I'm hired to guide divers who are open water certified to 60ft,

Show me that limitation. I have asked you to do this many times. You have totally ignored that request.

 

[Hartattack]

The certification level of a PADI OW Water Diver is 18 metres/60 feet

If I'm hired to guide a dive of PADI OW Divers certified to 60ft, I will not take them past that limit. Why would you do that Hartattack if there is no Scuba Police!?

Doing so could do nothing or it could start a cascade of events that could lead to injury or death. I'm simply mitigating risk.

If those last two things happen, I hold liability insurance— the plausibility that an insurance agency and legal team would go after you, that insurance agency and the dive shop you work for is extremely high.

If you three are okay with that risk, by all means, keep taking your students and certified open water divers beyond their limits and I hope nothing ever happens to you or those folks.

I choose to place the life of my clients and my own very high on my morality list.

 

[tursiops]

And, sadly, all of you are willing to push the limits for those who don't hold the same experience you have. Whatever experience that might be.

I hope you realize that PADI encourages OW students to get experience below 60 ft. Are you ignoring that part of your job?

 

[Hartattack]

I hope you realize that PADI encourages OW students to get experience below 60 ft. Are you ignoring that part of your job?

I would be happy to give them that experience in a class of instruction or hired for that specific Adventure Dive within the standards I signed on to teach.

 

[tursiops]

I would be happy to give them that experience in a class of instruction or hired for that specific Adventure Dive within the standards I signed on to teach.

Nah, that's semantics. You are willing to provide instruction, but not experience. Like, just go diving with someone.

 

[Hartattack]

Nah, that's semantics. You are willing to provide instruction, but not experience. Like, just go diving with someone.

Wait, what? I’m an instructor, I teach classes. Ya know, for a “Marine Scientist” and “Master Instructor” with “5000 dives” (Weird titles btw) you’re starting to sound like you have no idea what you are talking about.

 

[Scraps]

From the Dive Safety Practices Summary near the end of the PADI 1999 Open Water Diver Manual:

“Limit your dives to 18 meters/60 feet as a new diver. Remember that 18 meters/60 feet is the recommended limit for new divers.”

Note: It doesn’t say “for OW divers,” It says “new divers.” And it says the limit is recommended.

 

[Hartattack]

From the Dive Safety Practices Summary near the end of the PADI 1999 Open Water Diver Manual:

“Limit your dives to 18 meters/60 feet as a new diver. Remember that 18 meters/60 feet is the recommended limit for new divers.”

Note: It doesn’t say “for OW divers,” It says “new divers.” And it says the limit is recommended.

That’s correct. Afterwards it’s up to you to teach/guide within the limits you are comfortable with.

I choose to be conservative with others lives —you might follow these three who like to push the limits. My advice would be to get a few clients under your belt then decide for yourself.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Let’s hypothetically say I have a PADI OW cert from the late 90’s and for whatever reasons never took any further classes. However, through the course of all my diving I had many dives past 100’, dives at night, hunting dives, dives in cold water with a drysuit, navigation dives out of pure necessity. Let’s say I had some of the best mentors anybody could ever have, and all that diving and incrementally pushing further each time and learning gave me skills that most “class trained” divers with a lot less challenging dives simply don’t get. This isn’t me because I’ve had a considerable amount of class training (and tough dives), but I know people who fit this example.

If I paid to go diving on a boat and some DM told me that I was limited to 60’ because all I had was an OW cert, I would either demand a new DM or my money back or both. That would be the first and last time I use that operation.