Photo credit: Divesoft
The British Sub-Aqua Club (BSAC) is bolstering access to technical dive training with the new BSAC Divesoft Liberty CCR course.
This course is a first step (MOD 1) into the silent bubble-free world of rebreather diving, and opens up a new world of diving experiences and possibilities for members.
Benefits of the Divesoft Liberty rebreather
Founded in 2013 in the Czech Republic, Divesoft developed its closed circuit rebreather (CCR) primarily with the guidance of cave divers. The Divesoft Liberty was the first fault-tolerant electronically controlled rebreather released into the recreational diving market. The Liberty is designed where all vital electronic elements have redundancy so that no single failure can disable the system.
Even if a critical systems error occured, the diver can safely return to the surface on the Liberty, maximising safety and efficiency. The design follows the same approach utilised in many safety-critical applications in the aerospace industry.
The Liberty’s modularity and ease of maintenance allow the diver to maintain the unit in all environments, including the harsh conditions of an expedition.
BSAC Divesoft Liberty CCR Diver course
The brand new BSAC Liberty CCR course will teach a suitably qualified open-circuit diver to safely dive their rebreather to a maximum depth of 45m. This highly versatile unit offers a wide range of adjustability and settings, making it great for beginners and expert CCR divers alike.
Students get a thorough grounding in rebreather technology, and in-depth Liberty-specific training. The course includes decompression diving, and trimix gas planning, and teaches all the skills and drills required to dive the Liberty and address all possible situations.
The course is open to BSAC Sports Divers or above, who have completed a 35m depth certification. Trainees must also hold the Accelerated Decompression Procedures qualification or be an Advanced Nitrox diver (or equivalent.)
The BSAC Liberty course covers decompression diving and trimix gas planning, with skills and drills required to dive the Liberty and address all possible situations. Trainees can choose to dive with air as a diluent, but will have been trained using 20/35 trimix as a diluent, so when they use 20/35 are allowed to dive to a maximum depth of 45m, at the MOD 1 level of training.
The dry practical sessions will cover assembly, preparing and maintaining the Liberty, including updating the control firmware and downloading dives from the unit, using the Divesoft PC and phone applications.
All the new skills will be introduced during the sheltered water training dives, including applying the student’s current rescue skills to CCR diving: the sheltered water training is followed by seven open-water dives.
Nick Jewson, BSAC Technical Liberty Instructor said:
The introduction of the Liberty CCR MOD 1 course demonstrates that BSAC continues to evolve its technical dive offering for members. We plan to have a minimum of four BSAC Liberty instructors in place early in the 2024 season, and with potential students waiting to do the course we can’t wait to see BSAC-qualified Liberty divers using this impressive rebreather in exciting expeditions very soon.
The BSAC Liberty CCR MOD 1 course will be officially launched at the Go Diving Show near Kenilworth, Warwickshire on the weekend of 2nd-3rd March 2024, where Divesoft will have units on display.
Nick continued:
Visitors should head to stand N4 to get a hands-on look at the Divesoft Liberty and talk to the BSAC Liberty course team. Come and have a look, book your place on a regional Liberty try dive event, or sign up for the BSAC MOD 1 Liberty CCR Diver training course. We’ll ready to show you how the Liberty CCR can transform your diving!
Want to know more about technical diving?
For more advice and support on technical diving, from finding out if tech diving is for you, to CCR and open-circuit courses and safety information, visit the Technical diving support section
Author: Patrick Holliday | Posted 26 Feb 2024
