DennisS
Contributor
There can be boats 20 ft away going 30-40 mph. I've had them go directly overhead. A dive flag is needed there even though there are boaters that ignore them
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Flags are required on most boat dives also. Any reef dive, boat or beach, requires a flag. Most boats around here, you, or your group, is towing their own flag
What? I've never towed a flag diving from any comercial boat. The boat flys a flag but even the DM doesn't pull one. That includes Key Largo. Don't know if you consider that "around here" or not. But I sure as hell am not diving off a comercial operation's boat and towing a dive flag.
What? I've never towed a flag diving from any comercial boat. The boat flys a flag but even the DM doesn't pull one. That includes Key Largo. Don't know if you consider that "around here" or not. But I sure as hell am not diving off a comercial operation's boat and towing a dive flag.
"Around here" would be Broward County, AKA Ft Lauderdale, Pompano Beach, Deerfield Beach, etc. The flag is required by law and every boat has them for every group on drift dives. Key Largo boats, that take everyone in one big group with a guide, the flag on the boat would suffice because the boat can stay within 300' of all divers. That's not how boats around here do drift dives. They don't drop everyone in one big group so the boat cannot stay within 300' of all divers, so a flag must be taken. I've towed a flag from every commercial boat around here. The only option to not tow one would be a boat that puts a DM in the water on every dive, who then tows the flag. Around here, the only operation that does that is Pompano Dive Center.
They're required... and the boat has one... mounted on a metal pole somewhere on the boat... At least that's my experience.