Planet Scuba India is India’s First ever IDC!


INDIA’S FIRST EVER INSTRUCTOR DEVELOPMENT COURSE (IDC) AND INSTRUCTOR EXAM (IE)

BECOME A PADI INSTRUCTOR AND BE A PART OF INDIAN DIVING HISTORY!

Here is the basic information that you need to know. To ask any questions, confirm your attendance, order your PADI Materials or just have a chat call, David Perry on +91 94493 51192 or email at dave@planetscubaindia.com.

When?
The IDC runs from 16 November to 27 November including a free 2-day mock IE to fine tune your examination skills. The IE is on 28-30 November.

Where?
The IDC will be held at Planet Scuba India’s new purpose-built Instructor Training facility in Port Blair, Andaman Islands. With the latest multimedia classroom, an Olympic size pool and crystal clear waters on the doorstep the facilities will be unrivalled. The IE will also be in Port Blair.

Course Director
The Course Director running the IDC will be Matt Bolton – a Platinum Course Director normally based in Thailand who is generally considered to be one of the world’s top Instructor Trainers.

How much?
This first IDC will be cheaper than most comparable IDCs in the region and so the price of the IDC will be just 50,000 Rs (1,038 $USD)! This price includes your Instructor Candidate Workbook, open and confined water Lesson Planning Slates and your PADI IDC fee – worth over 12,000 Rs (250 $USD) in total!

You will pay direct to PADI the cost of the Instructor Exam (695 $AU).

Pre-requisites
You must be a PADI Divemaster or an Instructor in good standing with another recognized organisation, have 100 logged dives and have been diving for more than 6 months since your entry-level diving course.

If you are crossing over from another certification body or are unsure about your knowledge of PADI skills or current diving theory, we will be arranging a Pre-IDC Preparation Course.

You must also become an Emergency First Response Instructor prior to the IE (unless you are a current Instructor with DAN, Red Cross or other approved organisation) and we have scheduled an EFR Instructor Course for 14-15 November immediately prior to the IDC for all those candidates who need it.

PADI Materials
In addition to the Instructor Candidate Workbook and Slates included in the price of the IDC, PADI give the following list of Required Materials that you must have at the IDC/IE:

PADI Instructor Manual (digital or paper but must be legal and up to date i.e. 2009 version)
Peak Performance Buoyancy Specialty Instructor Outline
Diving Knowledge Workbook
Encyclopedia of Recreational Diving
Project AWARE Specialty Instructor Outline
AWARE – Coral Reef Conservation Specialty Instructor Outline
RDP – Table and eRDPML including associated Instructions for Use booklets

PADI Open Water Diver Manual
Open Water Diver Quizzes & Exams booklet
PADI Adventures in Diving Manual
PADI Rescue Diver Manual
Rescue Diver Final Exams booklet
PADI Divemaster Manual
Divemaster Final Exams booklet
Aquatic Cue Cards – for Open Water Diver, Adventures in Diving, Rescue Diver, Divemaster and Discover Scuba Diving

Please note that the various Manuals must be complete and up to date with the Knowledge Reviews intact.

You may have access to some or all of these materials – for anything that you don’t have simply order it through Planet Scuba India at a special wholesale price.

What should you do now?
Once you have decided to take part in the IDC, you simply contact me by email and we will arrange for you to pay a deposit of 10,000 Rs (208 $USD). We will then send you your Instructor Candidate Workbook so that you can make a start on your Independent Study – 17 Knowledge Reviews to do before the IDC starts!

David Perry will then stay in touch with you on at least a fortnightly basis to give you further information.

* Currency conversion based on current exchange rate

** please message for more information

Rescue Diving


In the PADI Rescue Diver dvd they call it ‘Serious Fun’ when it should be more accurately titled “Seriously tiring”. It isn’t just the physical aspects of the rescue diving course that tires you out. The mental aspects of being constantly alert to danger is what takes the toll on you.  But it is not all gloom and doom.  The course itself is very fun. It has its moments of sheer slapstick comedy you could only find on a television sitcom.

My course was a devious plot from the start. I had been informed that my open water scenarios would be held a day later. So i was pretty much not thinking about it while enjoying my 2 fun dives. Well, that is abit of a stretch. My first fun dive left me scratched from trying to do a walrus beach assault speciality(that is a whole different story) So i was taken by surprise when someone while snorkelling suddenly shouted he had a cramp and was struggling. It didn’t strike me yet that it was a test so i responded as the training instructed. Stop Breathe Act. I didn’t jump into the water straightaway as what i would have done. I looked around the boat and found a life buoy with rope attached and swung it out. Sure after that i had to swim in and rescue a “panicked” snorkeller.  The devious part was that the instructor didn’t wait for me to heal up from my scratched incident at the rocks. He cunningly used that as a stress test and threw me into the fire. It was a good thing i was pretty ready.

The fun didn’t end after that, there were 2 more scenarios thrown in before we headed back to the jetty. Heck, while at the jetty there was a YET another incident. This time in full view of spectators waiting for the next ferry. So there was panicked shouting from the stands as an added realism bonus. After a successful save there was even applause.  The final scenario was held the next day. I have to say that it wasn’t as easy. The only way you can ever be 100% prepared to handle an emergency is to train for it every single day. But when scuba diving is concerned there is no such thing as 100% sure. There will be some elements to shake things up abit. I remembered what a Divemaster on the boat told me while i was preparing to go out and make a save. ” Don’t worry about doing all the right things. Doing a save half prepared is better than NOT doing a save at all”

I am glad i went through the course. It has taught me a valuable lesson in keeping my head together and not panicking. It also allowed me to see my first shark ever. Now THAT IS SERIOUS FUN!

AOWD


That would be Advanced Open Water Diver to all those who aren’t initiated. What is the major difference between a OWD and AOWD you ask? I shall give you the simple answer. You get to go deeper. Almost twice as deep. As an OWD your maximum diving depth is 18 meters. As a AOWD you get to go down to 30 meters.

The thrill of going deeper to explore the deep blue is something that can’t be explained. Well it can be explained, there are many blogs and magazines that could wax lyrical at what it means to go deep. But i would place a bet that writing how it felt and actually being there is a world of difference. Anyways here’s how our AOWD class went.

We got certified as OWD students right there on the boat. The instructor then explained the next dive would be our first as AOWD dive. We dove in and learnt about PPB (Peak Performance Buoyancy) then we went on to do Boat Diving (that basically means diving off a boat) and then we went on to a rather thrilling Night Dive. If you have swam in the open ocean at night then you are about 1/10th of the way of getting how it feels. Try swimming in the dark about 15 meters below. With a torch to light your way you are mesmerized by the life around you, jelly fish that glow and seduce you, fishes you have never seen, the trance like movement of the soft corals. Just when you thought you would be swimming in the dark, you are taken by surprise at the amount of things you can see.

The next day we did the last two dives that would qualify us as AOWD. Navigation and Deep. The former was pretty straight forward, you needed to know how to use a compass and learn how to find your way around the ocean. The Deep. What can i say. It was probably the best dive ever. When you see your depth gauge point at 30, you have a moment where you disbelieve it. Then you take it in your stride and start exploring the varied and very beautiful sights that surround you. Trust me getting the AOWD is a must for any OWD. It just opens you up to so many diving areas around Andamans and around the world.

So, what are you waiting for? join us at PSI to get your OWD. Courses are running at full steam. Get started. Get diving right at your doorstep.

Exploring the Exciting & Exotic


Planet Scuba India is taking you to India’s very own beautiful and exotic Andamans for the next Big Dive Trip!! Join the growing army of Scuba Divers of the Bangalore Dive Club for this unforgettable tour! Get your friends and family along. Its a deal you cannot afford to miss!!
 
Training before Trip!!
What’s more, this deal gives you more than just a dive trip. We have arranged training programs that fit right in so if you or your friends cannot dive, learn before you go to the Andamans. Once you are there, plunge right into the sea. As a special arrangement, our instructor, David Perry, has arranged one PADI Open Water Diver certification program (3 days, 3 hours a day and one day in the Pool or as you fix up with the instructor) and, during the trip, an Advanced Open Water Diver Course. It can’t get better than this. REGISTER NOW! Just call us and we will register you.
 
Andamans’ Havelock Island is a beautiful place to dive at this time of the year.

Trip Schedule (17th March 2009 Night to 22nd March 2009)
The schedule for our Dive Trip to Andaman, Havelock Island is as follows:

 Tuesday 17th March 2009
·8 pm meet and board the Sleeper Coach or Private Bus
heading to  Chennai(coach / flight depending on popular demand)

Wednesday 18th March 2009
·5.50am departure from Chennai  and arrive at Portblair
around  7.55 am.
·8am  Breakfast and leave to jetty
·2.00 p.m. boat loaded and ready to set sail
·5.00 p.m. reach Havelock Island, check the conditions and
choose  fabulous dive sites and take rest and get ready to dive next day.

Thursday 19th march 2009
·8.00 am. Breakfast and get ready to dive
·10:15 – 11:15 Dive deep into the Blue and feel the stress
of city life fade away
·11:15 – 12 Sit back on the boat while our competent staff
switch tanks and prepare your gear for the next dive. Feel free to swap
exaggerated tales of the first dive and what you saw (we all know it looks
bigger under water)
·12 – 1 Suck or sit back on your second tank on us, that’s
up to you but we will ensure that you are given every opportunity to enjoy
another dive site
·2.00pm get ready for 3rd dive and later head back to the
resort for a late lunch and chill out for the evening
·7:30pm early dinner, stories of the deep, great company
that you will find it hard to pull yourself away to get a good night’s sleep
and charge up for the next day

Friday 20th March 2009
·7am breakfast and ready to leave by 8
·8:30am on the boat and following the same routine as
yesterday

Saturday  21st March 2009
·7am breakfast and ready to leave by 8
·8:30am on the boat and following the same
routine as yesterday and head back to  Portblair with another 3 dive
day racked up in your log book

Sunday 22nd March 2009
·7.00 a.m. all packed up, checked out and ready to head back
to Chennai and then back to the grind at home in Bangalore

Scuba Diving – The Ultimate Adventure Sport!


Most sports are played with national pride at stake, and few others are played with a competitive streak. But there are certain sports that border on a particular way of living and are niche to adrenaline junkies. Scuba diving is one of them.

The thrill of adventure and the rush of blood while taking that first dive into the deep blue waters are fantastic catalysts for most people who love adventure. Scuba diving is popular all over the world and in India, it is now picking up pace mainly due to the efforts of Planet Scuba India. The country’s first inland scuba diving school, based out of Bangalore, is aiming at making scuba diving one of the premier leisure activities for Bangaloreans, without the hassle of travelling to the diving hot spots across the country.

Very few adventure sport in the world matches up to scuba diving in terms of fascination, and most people in the world would like to try it out, given a chance. The chance is here. The time is now.

Leisure and adventure are two faces of the same coin, when it comes to sports like scuba diving. Once underwater, the diver can experience the beauty of the marine life in near weightlessness, and that feeling is incomparable. It has become a way of living for many people across the world and Indians are taking to the sport like a fish takes to water, all puns intended.

So, give the adrenaline junkie inside you a chance to take you through an exhilarating experience. Anyone can dive at Planet Scuba India!