418 MARK VI MIXED-GAS BREATHING APPARATUS 



TRAINING 



Mk-VI training commenced on Apr. 5 for the first class of 18 aquanauts and support divers. 

 This was a four -week course broken down as follows: 



1st week - 4 days classroom 



1 day pool indoctrination 



2nd week - 1 day 30 ft Gulf 

 4 days 60 ft Gulf 



3rd week - 5 days 100 ft Gulf 



4th week - 1 day 160 ft Gulf 



3 days 180 ft Gulf 



Each man spent 15 days diving and made 20 dives for a total of approximately 7 hours in the 

 water with the Mk-VI scuba. 



This first class used only the appropriate N2O2 mix, as authorization to use He02 had not 

 yet been received from the Bureau of Medicine and Surgery. On May 1, authorization to use 

 He02 was received from the Bureau of Ships, provided that a portable chamber and submarine 

 medical officer was present on the scene. On May 3 the second class of 20 Aquanauts and sup- 

 port divers commenced their four-week training period. Their schedule was as follows: 



1st and 2nd weeks were the same as for class 1. 



3rd week - 1 day 66 ft HeOz 



4 days 102 ft He02 



4th week - 1 day 145 ft HeOj 

 3 days 190 ft He02 



During this second class each man spent 15 days diving and made approximately 20 dives for a 

 total of 8 hours and 30 minutes in the water. The additional time in the water for the second 

 class can be accounted for by the fact of the extra decompression time required while using 

 He02. By comparison, the Mk-VI course conducted at Underwater Swimmers School, Key West, 

 provides for only 2-1/2 hours in the water; however, consideration must be given to the fact 

 that the Underwater Swimmers School course is geared to teach the relatively inexperienced 

 diver. This course completed the initial Mk-VI training. It had been programmed for one ad- 

 ditional week of diving for the first class using HeO 2. This did not materialize due to additional 

 training requirements coupled with the tight schedule on the West Coast. 



The open-sea dives were conducted in the Gulf off Panama City in 30 to 200 ft of water; 

 visibility ranged from 20 to 60 ft; hard packed bottom sand; water temperature approximately 

 70 F on the surface and 65 F on the bottom. During the months of April and May not one day 

 of training was lost due to inclement weather. The diving class was supported by the UB-102 

 (Diving Boat) and YSD for the shallow dives and by Mine Division Eighty-one (MSO's) for the 

 deep dives (over 100 ft). 



TRANSPORTATION OF EQUIPMENT 



The 20 Mk-VI rigs were originally packed in cardboard containers. Because of the distinct 

 possibility of damage in this type of packing, it was decided to procure fiberboard steamer 

 trunks and outfit them with molded ethafoam packing. Twenty-four trunks were outfitted, 22 for 

 the Mk-VI rigs, one for test kits, and one for oxygen gages. Four hours were required to 

 modify and 30 minutes to pack each trunk. 



There was no damage to the rigs, kits, or gages during shipping, either by air to the west 

 coast or by truck back to the Mine Defense Laboratory. 



