The British Sub-Aqua Club is bolstering access to technical dive training with its new BSAC Divesoft Liberty CCR course, the first step into the silent bubble-free world of rebreather diving
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 design of the Liberty rebreather follows the same approach utilised in many safety-critical applications in the aerospace industry, wherein all vital electronic elements have a redundant backup so that no single failure can disable the system. Even if a critical systems error should occur, the diver would be able to safely return to the surface.
The Liberty’s modularity and ease of maintenance allow the diver to maintain the unit in all environments, including the harsh conditions of a cold water cave-diving expedition.
More from Liberty
- Review | Divesoft Liberty sidemount CCR
- Jill Heinerth tests the Liberty sidemount rebreather
- Five of Czechia’s unique dive spots
BSAC Divesoft Liberty CCR Diver course
The new BSAC Liberty CCR course will teach a suitably qualified open-circuit diver to safely dive their rebreather to a maximum depth of 45m. The highly versatile unit offers a wide range of adjustability and settings, making it great for beginners and expert CCR divers alike.
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 received training using 20/35 trimix as a diluent, which would allow them 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.
‘The introduction of the Liberty CCR MOD 1 course demonstrates that BSAC continues to evolve its technical dive offering for members,’ said Nick Jewson, BSAC Technical Liberty Instructor. ‘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 UK’s Go Diving Show on the weekend of 2nd-3rd March 2024, where Divesoft will have units on display.
‘Visitors should head to stand N4 to get a hands-on look at the Divesoft Liberty and talk to the BSAC Liberty course team,’ said Jewson. ‘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!’
To learn more about the BSAC diving community, visit www.bsac.com. You can also follow the club on Facebook, Twitter (X), Instagram, YouTube and TikTok.
