CCR (rebreather) diving training: how it goes and what to expect

The Theory: Building a New Foundation

Before you enter the water with a CCR, you spend significant time in the classroom. The theoretical part of the training covers the principles and science behind the equipment:

• CCR systems: Understanding how closed and semi-closed circuits work.
• Construction and components: What makes up a rebreather, and the function of each part.
• Physics: Critical for grasping how CCR behaves differently from open circuit.
• Physiology: Oxygen and CO₂ management, gas density, human limits, decompression.
• Chemistry: How scrubbers work and why CO₂ absorption matters.
• Electronics and controls: Familiarity with the unit’s displays, alarms, and logic.
• Dive planning with CCR: Dealing with bailout strategies, runtime limits, and contingencies.

This background knowledge is vital. You are not just learning how to use a new piece of kit—you’re learning how to understand and trust the machine that will sustain your breathing in places where surfacing is not an option.

The Practice: From Dry Runs to Real Dives

Once the theory is in place, training moves into practice.

• Dry preparation: Assembly, disassembly, maintenance, and using checklists for pre-dive tests.
• Confined water sessions: Initial dives in a pool or sheltered water.
• Open-water dives: Progressing to controlled environments and eventually real diving scenarios.
• Skills development:

1. Entries and ascents with a CCR
2. Mastering buoyancy in a new way (counterlungs change everything)
3. Monitoring and adjusting PO₂
4. Manual control of PO₂
5. Exercises to internalize CCR principles
6. Emergency responses—hypoxia, hyperoxia, hypercapnia, floods, electronics failures

Emergency drills make up a large part of CCR training. Different agencies teach multiple approaches—sometimes in parallel, sometimes tailored to their philosophy. Manufacturers also influence training: for the Liberty CCR, Divesoft appointed Jakub Šimánek to define unit-specific training standards. Over the years, he has prepared dozens of instructors and instructor-trainers, shaping consistent practices around this unit.

Why Training Matters

Experienced rebreather divers often emphasize that solid training is what allows you to safely unlock the potential of a CCR. These perspectives align with what training agencies and the Rebreather Training Council (RTC) stress: CCR diving is a discipline of precision, redundancy, and planning. The unit itself may be robust—“Liberty is certified to the highest international standards, which is a peace of mind for technical divers”—but it’s the diver’s preparation that makes the difference.

What to Expect as a Student

Expect to feel like a beginner again. You’ll spend long hours repeating drills, sometimes until they feel automatic. You’ll analyze problems, solve them, and then solve them again in different ways. You’ll learn to slow down, think ahead, and make decisions based on gas management, PO₂ monitoring, and unit behavior.

The process can be humbling—but it’s also rewarding. By the end of the course, you won’t just know how to dive a CCR. You’ll understand the why behind every procedure, and you’ll have the confidence to handle the unexpected.

A Gateway to Exploration

When training is complete, a CCR opens doors to dives that were once beyond reach—longer bottom times, quieter encounters with marine life, and the ability to explore caves and wrecks with a different margin of safety. As one review put it, “For deep technical and exploration, Liberty CCR is among the most robust and configurable”.

But reaching that point begins with training: structured, demanding, and transformative. If you’re ready to start, prepare to relearn diving from the ground up.

The previous article can help you with that.

• Jakub Šimánek, Divesoft Factory IT