TDI and Rebreathers: What’s Available?

Feed your curiosity and increase your knowledge base

For anyone that has attend a local dive show, read any diving news or has just spent some time surfing the internet, they have seen that rebreathers, and particularly Closed Circuit Rebreathers (CCR), are all the buzz. Technical Diving International (TDI) heard that buzz in 1995 with the Semi-Closed Circuit Rebreather (SCR) and then again in 2001 with the CCR. Since 1995 a lot of rebreathers have been added to the approved list for TDI training – so many, in fact, that we thought it was time for a review.

Before we get into that review, though, we thought it might be helpful for you to understand why some rebreathers are not on our list. This is by no means a negative reflection on any rebreather manufacturer. TDI selects rebreathers based on the following criteria: annual production of units, user manual and third party testing. That is just a short list of some of the key areas that are evaluated. We have also never authorized the training on “modifie” or “home-built” units. Why? For two of the reasons just listed: there would be no user manual to explain how the unit would work with the modifications or as a home build, and there would be no third party testing. The end goal in everything we do – including approving education on rebreathers – is diver safety.

The first SCR in TDI’s course list was the Draeger Atlantis. The first CCR unit TDI ever approved was the Inspiration Classic; for you old timers that should bring back some memories! These RBs, in hindsight, were pretty straight forward and, of course, not nearly as sophisticated as today’s units. The Atlantis when first released did not even have a PO2 monitoring device; everything relied on a pre-dive checklist that had to be followed. This was also the case with the original Inspiration; however, it did have two (primary and back-up) monitoring devices for PO2.

TDI now has 11 CCR rebreathers on our list. We have come a long way since 2001:

• Inspiration,
• Poseidon MK VI Discovery,
• Evolution,
• KISS (Classic and Sport),
• Optima,
• Megalodon,
• Titan,
• Ourboros,
• Sentinel,
• Pelegian and
• rEvo.

Each of these units has their own unique features and applications, and just like open circuit (OC) equipment, each competes to appeal to your personal preferences. For the first time in many years, we have also added a new SCR, the KISS GEM, along with three other SCRs. SCRs certainly have their place in our industry and a market that enjoys their use and simplicity.

We are also very proud to announce that we will be adding two more units to our list: the PRISM II and the Explorer (an active SCR). The PRISM II is an updated model of the PRISM TOPAZ and is now being built and distributed by American Underwater Products (AUP).

So where does all this leave you, the diving professional wanting to step into the world of rebreathers? It leaves you in a position with a lot of good choices but ones that need to be researched… which means you get to do some diving! Most, if not all, of these manufacturers put on events that allow you to try the rebreathers, or you could contact a local TDI rebreather instructor and see if they are putting on a try dive for the SCR or CCR that they are certified to teach on.

Where does this leave the already certified TDI SCR or CCR instructor? You are also in a very good place. Lots of marketing effort is being put into the new products to create brand awareness which means that customers are hearing about them. Your job is to partner with and capitalize on those marketing efforts by the manufacturers and start to capture those customer leads.

TDI will continue to stay on the leading edge of the rebreather training market, and as we do we will send out releases of approved units. We will also add them to our unit specific standards so you can find the list in the member section of our website.

To learn more about the benefits that rebreather training will bring to you and your facility contact your Regional Manager in the US or internationally – visit https://www.tdisdi.com for the Regional Office serving you.

Once you run deep and you run silent, it will be difficult to turn back!