Technical Diving News in Thailand and South East Asia

Diving instructor takes the leap into technical diving

Koh Tao, Thailand

Big Blue Tech celebrates the graduation of Eric Vinik from his TDI Intro To Tech Course conducted over 2 days with 4 dives off the coast of Thailand on an island called Koh Tao taught by TDI Technical instructor Ash Dunn. Eric is a professional diving instructor who lives in Koh Samui which is a neighboring island and traveled to Koh Tao for this course.

TDI’s intro to tech course is designed to prepare divers for diving a double tank/cylinder configuration using proper equipment and techniques. In this class, students will be trained in the use of double tanks/cylinders and in the potential failure problems associated with them. The course includes a minimum of 6 hours of academics & land drills and a minimum of four in-water sessions.

Advice was given on kit set up and choices, and focuses on increasing proficiency with double tank configuration, through proper control of the buoyancy, trim, propulsion, teamwork and other TDI principles. Buoyancy, trim and ascent practice together with problem management and gas planning adds up to a worthwhile investment in training to use the new equipment.

Congratulations Eric and we look forward to seeing you again for future training!

Recreational instructors cross their skills over to BSAC (British Sub Aqua Club)

Koh Tao, Thailand

Big Blue Tech intern James Foleher successfully completed his BSAC Open Water Instructor Crossover Course yesterday after a completing a 4 day work shop with academic and water presentations and additional skills not included in other instructor courses.

The BSAC instructor cross-over course includes oxygen administration (which is standard at the Dive Leader level) and decompression diving theory. Since James is already a technical diver and an oxygen provider instructor he didn’t need to attend those workshops.

James started the crossover as an experienced PADI IDC Staff Instructor who’s majority of teaching and experience comes from working in England. The course concluded with a skill circuit in the swimming pool which was used to test James’s skills and give him the chance to demonstrate his teaching quality.

In addition to his graduation, BSAC National Instructor Les Skelton awarded James with Merit which means performance above the passing grade! Good job James!

New technical course from TDI shows popularity in Thailand.

Koh Tao, Thailand

Big Blue Tech celebrates the graduation of Thijs Greven from his TDI Intro To Tech Course conducted over 2 days with 4 dives off the coast of Thailand on an island called Koh Tao taught by TDI Technical instructor Ash Dunn and assisted by Technical Instructor Candidate James Foleher. Thijs is a student traveling through Asia after a term in the Dutch Army.

TDI’s intro to tech course is designed to prepare divers for diving a double tank/cylinder configuration using proper equipment and techniques. In this class, students will be trained in the use of double tanks/cylinders and in the potential failure problems associated with them. The course includes a minimum of 6 hours of academics & land drills and a minimum of four in-water sessions.

Advice was given on kit set up and choices, and focuses on increasing proficiency with double tank configuration, through proper control of the buoyancy, trim, propulsion, teamwork and other TDI principles. Buoyancy, trim and ascent practice together with problem management and gas planning adds up to a worthwhile investment in training to use the new equipment.

Congratulations Tijs and we look forward to seeing you again for future training!

Female technical divers can now get their own clothing.

Koh Tao, Thailand

Big Blue Tech have released new designs to our existing online shop of technical diving clothing. One popular addition has been the “Team Chick” shirt which has been designed specifically for female technical divers. Designed by Helen Artal and Yvonne Fries who are not only female but also Big Blue Tech’s SSI Technical Instructors.

The new shirt features our famous twin set design with a pink theme, flowers and the slogan “We Go Down”

in addition to the female shirt is the “Un Reel” diving shirt for all the cave diving enthusiasts. You can see our entire product line here : Technical Diving Clothing

All clothing is stocked year round and shipped world wide!

Recreational Divers Experience Technical Diving in Thailand

Koh Tao, Thailand

Big Blue Tech celebrates the graduation of Ian Goodfellow, Pierre Peigne and Trevor Hailstones from their TDI Intro to Tech course conducted by TDI Technical Instructor Andrew Cavell on Koh Tao Island off the coast of Thailand during 3 days of education through 4 dives and academic theory sessions.

The TDI Intro To Tech course is designed to teach control, buoyancy, equipment setup and safety drills for diving in technical diving gear. This course is also known as a twin-set course and is modeled after the GUE Foundations Course which focuses on trim and control.

The TDI Intro to Tech course provides the students with a certification to wear technical diving gear to their own and current certification limit providing them the chance to gain valuable experience through our center on Koh Tao by conducting recreational dives in technical gear.

Technical diving gear provides comfort, redundancy of air, twice the amount of air and it provides one of the most valuable resources sought in diving; it looks cool!

Technical diving expedition in Thailand comes to an successful conclusion.

Koh Tao, Thailand

Big Blue Tech concluded the 3 week technical diving expedition road trip arriving at our final destination in Pattaya which is located just outside Bangkok in Thailand.

Leaving Krabi James Thornton-Allan and James Foleher drove 12 hours north to Pattaya after stopping in at Big Blue Chumphon to transfer the majority of the diving equipment back to Koh Tao. Arriving in Pattaya the divers met up with Mark Slinn who is a resident of Pattaya and former Big Blue Tech intern who was gracious enough to house the weary divers for the next few days.

The past three weeks on the road from May 11th till May 31st saw the divers visit some of the best diving destinations and divers diving conditions in Thailand and south east Asia.

The divers experienced caves, caverns, world war 2 wrecks, new virgin wrecks, sunken forests, coral reefs, deep walls, strong currents, big waves, deep penetrations, salt water, fresh water, night diving, cold water diving using all mixes of oxygen and helium. They dived from the shore, longtail boat, large dive boat, muddy banks, cave entrances and a liveaboard.

The expedition covered over 2000km including a flight to Singapore and a finally flight from Bangkok down to Koh Samui which is the neighboring island to Koh Tao.

The purpose behind the expedition was to train and prepare Mr. Foleher as a technical diver with a large variety of environments, experiences and challenges to give the confidence and ability to begin his technical diving instructor courses and assists in June.

This expedition couldn’t of been made possible without the support of the following: Halcyon Dive Equipment, Pro-Tec Dive College, Dive Supply, One Stop, IQ Divers, Kamala Dive Centre, Friendly Waters Seasports, the crew of the Mv Samudera, Oms Dive Equipment, Khao Sok National Park, TDI / SDI South East Asia, Royal Thai Navy and Air Asia.

You can follow Mr. Foleher’s progress as he moves on to his BSAC Instructor Cross-over course on the 4th of June.

Popular travel guide gives top review to Big Blue Diving.

Koh Tao Thailand

Excerpt from The Rough Guide: Thailand – Seventh Edition

“Located on the west facing side of the island of Koh Tao Big Blue Diving is the ideal spot to base yourself for one of the most enjoyable & relaxing dive holidays you can have anywhere in the world and at an extremely affordable price. With 3 dive boats at their disposal & operating a choice of up to 13 divesites daily this is one of the best run operations in Thailand & in 2009 deservedly won the prestigious SSI Award for Most Successful Dive Center in Asia. Pretty easy to see why as well.

They have a beach side bar & Restaurant advertising the greatest sunsets on the island while eating the greatest pizza on the island! They have over 40 rooms offering Free air conditioned dormitory style accommodation to students doing their Open Water Courses, or private fan rooms with en-suite for just 200 bt per night. Or they can offer you bungalows on the beach starting at just 400 Bt per night increasing to prices over 4000 Bt per night!

Environmentally aware, Big Blue organize frequent beach & divesite clean ups as well Whale shark & Turtle data collaboration & local land conservation projects & in 2008 & 2009 won PADI’s Project Aware Award for Environmental Achievement as well as the SSI Award in 2009 for Most Environmentally Active Dive Center in Asia.Big Blue Diving is one of Thailand’s largest & well respected Diver Education center’s & in 2009 was awarded with 2 of the most sought after awards issued by SSI Thailand with Instuctor Trainer Simon Garrity being awarded with the Highest Instructor Certifications in 2009 & Yvonne Fries (Tech Instructor) was awarded the Highest Student Certifications in Thailand.

Recently Big Blue has also become a well recognized Technical Diving Center & was awarded the Highest Technical Diving certifications in Thailand by TDI. They offer all forms of Technical Diving, Rebreather diving & also organize monthly Cave Diving trips to Khao Sok National Park & in the past year found a wreck lying in 40 meters depth just off Koh Tao, making it the most accessible wreck dive from Koh Tao. Offering all PADI, SSI , BSAC, SDI & TDI courses from beginner to Instructor it is easy to see why Big Blue Diving Koh Tao has become one of the most recognized & well respected Dive centers in the Asia Pacific Region.

For more information please feel free to contact info@bigbluediving.com or see for yourself on www.bigbluediving.com”

More information found hereThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Technical divers explore Asia’s deepest documented underwater cave.

Ao Nang, Krabi, Thailand

Continuing the expedition James Foleher and James Thornton-Allan departed Phuket and drove south to Krabi province which is host to the deepest documented underwater cave in Asia called Sra Keow Cave located just outside a small beachfront town called Ao Nang.

Krabi is best known for towering limestone cliffs and jungle forests which cover the landscape located just south of Phuket on the west coast of Thailand.

Sra Keow Cave is a fresh water cave which starts at a depth of 12m and drops at a 45 degree angle vertically down to 240m. This is the deepest documented cave in Thailand as recorded by Big Blue Tech Instructor Trainer Ben Reymenants who reached the depth on open circuit trimix, his account of the story can be found here.

The purpose of this visit was to experience deep water caves and also use the entrance of the system to conduct a TDI Cavern Course within the light zone of around 20m inside the entrance.

The cave which is nestled in the jungle and home to elephants who use the fresh water pool to drink from is great contrast to the deep wreck diving experienced earlier in the expedition in the ocean.

Arriving at the pool edge the truck was parked, equipment setup and the divers jumped in at their leisure conducting 2 days of diving in and around the cave.

Mr. Foleher excelled at the skills and environment as he had overhead reeling experience already when he completed his TDI Advanced Wreck on Koh Tao before departing on the expedition. The TDI Advanced Wreck and his recent TDI Cavern Course covers the majority of overhead environments found in technical diving.

These courses open up the world of cave diving which he is now eligible to get involved in.

*Special thanks to One Stop Dive for looking after us for the days we were there. This is the second time we have relied on One Stop Dive for their Halcyon equipment support, mixed gas supply and general support and they have always provided excellent service!

Technical divers pay their respects to the fallen sailors and soldiers of the HMS Repulse.

South China Seas, Singapore.

Shortly after the outbreak of war in the Pacific on 8 December 1941, the HMS Repulse left Singapore in company with the other major element of the Eastern Fleet, including HMS Prince of Wales, and 4 destroyers, to try and intercept Japanese invasion force heading towards Malaya (Malaysia).

On December 10, 1941, after failing to find any Japanese invasion forces, and turning south, Japanese aircraft were spotted. The fleet was attacked by 86 Japanese aircraft from the 22nd Air Flotilla based in Saigon, which attacked both HMS Prince of Wales and HMS Repulse.

The HMS Repulse survived a bomb hit and managed to dodge 14 torpedoes before being sunk in 20 minutes after receiving 5 torpedo hits. 327 crew members died in the sinking. Including a young electrician Arthur Frederick Cavell.

On April 30th 2010 technical diving instructor , for Big Blue Tech, Andrew Frederick Cavell joined an expedition to dive on the HMS Repulse. During his expedition he noticed a similar name and matching surname in the list of sailors who died on during the sinking.

Returning home to Thailand Andrew researched and discovered his great uncle was a serving member of the HMS Repulse and in fact is the same sailor who’s name he saw on the expedition. Andrew had no idea he had been diving on a wreck that was resting place for someone related.

The wreck site was designated as a ‘Protected Place’ in 2001 under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986, just prior to the 60th anniversary of her sinking. The Royal Navy maintains a White Ensign flag on the mast of the Repulse. However this flag has been either removed or washed away by the strong currents.

Leading up to a second technical diving expedition a decision was made to place a Red Ensign on the wreck at the bow to honour the site and those who lost their lives serving on the HMS Repulse. The Red Ensign or “Red Duster” which is commonly used by Royal Merchant Navy Ships but at the same time by all Royal Navy who are departing from a foreign port. The Repulse would of flown this flag when leaving Singapore and never returned to remove it.

The current flag on the bow was placed by James Foleher and James Thornton-Allan who are both former soldiers from the British military.

In keeping with the rules outlined by the Protection of Military Remains Act there was no penetration or disturbance conducted on either expedition dives to the HMS Repulse by members of Big Blue Tech.

Technical Divers advance to Advanced Nitrox Diving in Thailand

Koh Tao, Thailand

Big Blue Tech celebrates the graduation of Jennifer Cronin and Johan Arsborg from their TDI Advanced Nitrox course conducted by TDI Technical Instructor Andrew Cavell on Koh Tao Island off the coast of Thailand over 3 days with 4 dives and academic theory presentations.

This is the first (1st) stage of training in the series of TDI’s tech diver development program. The objective of this course is to train the divers in the benefits, hazards and proper procedures for utilizing Enriched air nitrox twenty one (21%) percent through to one hundred (100%) percent oxygen for dives not requiring staged decompression. To a depth of forty (40) msw, one hundred thirty (130) fsw.

The course enables the certified diver to use enriched air nitrox to extend their no decompression limits by swapping gas to higher blends as the dive continues and becomes shallower. This gives the diver no decompression obligation and longer deeper dives than experience before.

This course is also a pre-requisite to decompression diving which the students will start in a few days.

HMS Repulse Liveaboard technical diving trip provides perfect conditions for helium mixed gas diving.

South China Sea, Singapore

Continuing the expedition James Foleher and James Thornton-Allan departed Phuket and flew to Singapore to join a technical diving liveaboard on the Mv Samudera Quest which departs for 2 days and 3 nights on the HMS Repulse Shipwreck located off the coast of Singapore in south east Asia.

The purpose of this trip is to expose Mr. Foleher to the challenging conditions of the south china sea with strong currents and large swells. In addition to the environment the HMS Repulse is one of the top technical diving wrecks in the world and a perfect destination to combine with the training for the TDI Trimix Diver Course

The divers departed in the morning of the 21st of May and flew Air Asia direct from Phuket to Singapore Changi airport. Buy excess luggage upon booking was essential to avoid the heavy fines incurred from last months flight.

The plan was to meet the divers at Taneh Merrah Ferry Terminal where we would clear customs and immigration and board the Mv Samudera Quest which would start it’s overnight journey out to the HMS Repulse.

The Mv Samudera is a converted river ferry which has been adopted for technical and recreational diving with on board trimix, nitrox, oxygen supply and decompression bar below. The food is excellent and that always makes a difference on every long journey.

Arriving in the morning of the 22nd we were tied onto the torpedo damage section midships of the wreck at a depth of 40m. The sand would be a 55m which would be the majority of our dives since the wreck is almost inverted which meant having to go under the deck to explore the exterior.

During the first dive a British flag was placed on the bow, more to that story found later.

After completing 2 normoxic trimix dives the weather changed and a storm moved in. Unable to remain on site the vessel moved to a local island to seek refuge from the stormy weather. The waves were so strong that it broke the tie off line casting the liveaboard into the waves. Although it proved no concern to the dives it did mean someone would have to go back in and tie the rope back on to the wreck and there were no eager volunteers.

The following day it was decided to move on from the repulse and conducted more dives on the Au Tanker which is a very large and deep tanker with the sand at about 65m. This old vessel appeared to be an insurance scam as it was picked clean of everything that you would associate with a wreck.

Moving closer to Singapore a final wreck called the “Sara-D” wreck is another large freighter which many believed to be larger than the HMS Repulse. This wreck proved to be one of the favorites with large penetrations, crystal clear water and easy access with the wreck lying on it’s starboard side with the hull sheltering the divers from the current.

Singapore has one of the largest commercial shipping ports in the world which provides a lot of wrecks.

Upon returning to Singapore we disembarked and explored the city waiting for a return flight home to Phuket to continue our expedition to Krabi. Congratulations to James Foleher who completed his TDI Trimix Diver Course.

SSI (Scuba Schools International) TXR (Technical Extended Range) course delivered in Thailand

Koh Tao, Thailand

Big Blue Tech celebrates the graduation Rikki Clarke, and one of our very own Recreational Instructors Dan Bolton, from their SSI TXR Advanced Nitrox and Technical Foundations courses conducted by Helen Artal and Yvonne Fries.

The combined courses were conducted over 5 days, and are the perfect introduction to Technical Diving. On land the students learned about advanced dive planning, gas requirements and oxygen management, as well as taking a deeper look into the physics, physiology, equipment, and decompression theory that are involved in Technical Extended Range Diving.

In the water the boys were taken back to basics in the confined session to get to grips with their new equipment, and learn the various skills required for the course. They then completed 6 open water training dives to depths between 30 and 42 meters using both air and nitrox, and executed dive plans including up to 15 minutes stage decompression.

The combined Advanced Nitrox and Technical Foundations course is ideal for divers looking to increase their knowledge and safety in the water, while extending both your depth and no-deco limits, in addition to giving you an introduction to Decompression diving.

Divers take the first step in technical diving with the TDI Intro to Tech course.

Koh Tao, Thailand

Big Blue Tech celebrates the graduation of Johan Arsborg, Charles Bernier, Edward Pearl and Calvin Beale from their TDI Intro to Tech course conducted by TDI Technical Instructor Andrew Cavell on Koh Tao Island off the coast of Thailand during 3 days of education through 4 dives and academic theory sessions.

The TDI Intro To Tech course is designed to teach control, buoyancy, equipment setup and safety drills for diving in technical diving gear. This course is also known as a twin-set course and is modeled after the GUE Foundations Course which focuses on trim and control.

The TDI Intro to Tech course provides the students with a certification to wear technical diving gear to their own and current certification limit providing them the chance to gain valuable experience through our center on Koh Tao by conducting recreational dives in technical gear.

Technical diving gear provides comfort, redundancy of air, twice the amount of air and it provides one of the most valuable resources sought in diving; it looks cool!

Divers take the professional road with BSAC and Big Blue Tech

Koh Tao, Thailand

Big Blue Tech welcomes Johan Arsborg and Laura Osborne who will be completing their BSAC (British Sub Aqua Club) Dive Leader course with us over the next few weeks. The course will be conducted by BSAC Extended Range Instructors Ash Dunn and Andrew Cavell who will be working together to train these divers the BSAC way!

The BSAC Dive Leader course works on a method of mentoring with a focus on diving skills and less focus on assisting courses. The divers will learn navigation both surface and underwater, how to find and dive wrecks,  planning and managing dives, additional first aid for diving related injuries, as well as advanced diving skills and techniques for leading divers underwater. In addition this course includes the BSAC Oxygen Administration Course which teaches them how to administer oxygen to diving related casualties.

While the divers initially went for other options they were looking to enhance their skills as divers and not increase they’re employ-ability. This course helps the students gain confidence and ability in diving and gives them pride in having a unique and sought after certification.

During their course they will be responsible for the planning and execution of both technical and recreational dives in a supervision role, let’s hope they’re up to the challenge!

Internship program delivers the infamous Solo Diver certification and Research diver certification.

Phuket, Thailand

Continuing the expedition James Foleher and James Thornton-Allan continued diving in Phuket to conduct technical diver training and specialty diver training during a 3 week expedition / road trip through Thailand and south east Asia.

Today James Foleher completed the final aspects of his Scuba Diving International™ (SDI) Solo Diver Certification and his SDI Research Diver Certification. The dives were conducted in various environments in the early stages of the expedition and his internship but today James finalized his exam for the Solo Diver Course and completed his research on the HMS Repulse Wreck which we will be conducting a Technical Diving International™ (TDI) Trimix Diver Course in a few days.

James will be releasing his research in combination with a trip report online after the journey to Singapore has been completed.

The survey techniques used in the research diver program had already been conducted including how to measure, take inventory and dissect a dive site along with methods of installing a grid system. These skills had to be simulated because the wreck site was designated as a ‘Protected Place’ in 2001 under the Protection of Military Remains Act 1986, just prior to the 60th anniversary of her sinking. The Act makes it an offense to interfere with a protected place, to disturb the site or to remove anything from the site. Divers may visit the site but the rule is look, don’t touch and don’t penetrate.

The law concerning protected places applies anywhere in the world, but in practice, outside the UK, the sanctions can only be enforced against UK citizens, UK flagged ships, or vessels landing in the UK, unless backed by local legislation. Being as both James Thornton-Allan and James Foleher are British and former British Soldiers we’re certainly

Tomorrow is our last day for sightseeing in Phuket before flying down to Singapore.

Tech Diving Expedition: Racha Noi and Racha Yai in Phuket

Tuesday, May 18th, 2010

Tags: clear blue water, coral dive, decompression, dive sites, hearty lunch, koh tao, maximum depth, nitrox, ocean diving, open ocean, phuket phuket, phuket thailand, steep hill, technical diving
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TDI Instructor Crossover Course Completed in Thailand

Monday, May 17th, 2010

Tags: decompression dives, diving courses, instructor koh tao, instructor trainer, koh tao island, koh tao thailand, nitrox, tdi instructor, technical instructor, Vanuatu, wreck diving
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SSI TechXR Instructor Course Completed in Thailand

Monday, May 17th, 2010

Tags: 50m, decompression, high quality education, instructor trainer, koh tao island, scuba schools international, SSI TechXR, ssi txr, tech instrictor course, tech instructors, technical diving, technical experience, theoretical knowledge, training material
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Big Blue Tech Student in the News

Monday, May 17th, 2010

Tags: desert sports, diving club, diving team, dubai uae, falmouth, galvani, happy hunting, hms, international waters, khao sok national park, nazi submarine, sloop, sports diving, steve jeffs, straits of hormuz, sunken temple, technical diver, william leeman
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Tech Diving Expedition: Mv Sea Chart Shipwreck

Sunday, May 16th, 2010

Tags: 100m, dive shop, iq dive, khao lak thailand, narcosis, sea chart, shipwreck, similan islands, wreck diving, wrecks
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Try Megaladon CCR Dive in Thailand

Saturday, May 15th, 2010

Tags: breathing gas, breathing loop, buoyancy, cave diving, ccr, closed circuit rebreather, koh tao thailand, leeming, megalodon rebreather, oxygen partial pressure, rebreathers, wreck diving
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