??? Rebreather Training ???

[Gary H]

Last night a friend of mine brought a rather unexpected surprise to my 50th Birthday Party - a pair of Russian IDA71 rebreather sets! He inherited them from a college buddy of his that passed away.

He nor I have any idea about how to use them or if they are serviceable. Looking at photos of them surfing the net, it looks like they are complete with full face mask, the green painted housing, canisters, and small external pressurized bottles that read in Kgf/cm2 (they are both pressurized with gas).

Anyway, neither of us wants to hurt ourselves with these things, but I'm wondering if anyone on the board either trains/certifies people for rebreathers or knows someone they'd recommend. I am in Central Florida.

Thanks, Gary H

[KEYSKILLER]

I Know This Is A Late Response To This Thread But I Just Found It
Key West Tec Divers (kwtd) Certifies Rebreathers

[aue-mike]

The IDA 71 is a different beast compared to modern rebreathers. It was built as an oxygen rebreather, similar in principle to the LAR V. Some divers refit these to make a more useful ccr, but it takes some knowledge to make the mods.

If you are serious about doing something with these, contact Dave Sutton up in RI. He has a significant amount of knowledge on these Russian rebreathers.

dsutton@redstaraviation.org
or
pilots@nac.net

He can also train you to fly MIG fighters!
Cheers,
Mike