In at the Deep End
It’s a career that attracts people from all over the world – have you got what it takes?
Situated in the shadow of Ben Nevis, the waters of Loch Linnhe look cold deep and foreboding. And despite the beautiful scenery, you’re not interested in admiring the surroundings when you’re submerged in the water, breathing through a tube, and carrying more equipment than you ever thought possible. But this is the life of a commercial diver, and while its tough work, the rewards are there for people who are good at it.
It offers the potential to earn more than £1000 a day, to choose where and when you want to work, and to travel round the world while doing so. And even in these uncertain economic times, it’s a growth industry. That’s why The Underwater Centre in Fort William is packed with people from around the world keen on a career in commercial diving. The majority go on to work in the oil and gas industry, carrying out all manner of tasks in the most hazardous of environments. And it only took the most brief of tasters to see that divers earn their money.
Even climbing into the neoprene dry suit saw me flapping around like a walrus, and that was before instructor Cameron McCreadie began helping me into the equipment needed to stay alive underwater. He said: “I had one student who said they couldn’t do it before they’d even put their helmet on. They’d already paid the money and passed their medical, but they just couldn’t go through with it.”
Yet it’s easy to sympathise, as once you’ve got the helmet on and begin breathing the air supply, you can start to feel claustrophobic. And when that happens you can start panicking, which isn’t advisable when you could be working in deep water with dangerous tools and equipment. In fact, its difficult imagining how it’s possible to work when the equipment required weighs you down so much. Cameron said: “When you begin your training here, you’re diving for about an hour a day at first, but commercial divers can easily spend five or six hours at a time like this. “It’s something you get used to, and over time you build up the muscles you need, so it does become easier.”
The Centre’s marketing manager, Dougie Ormiston, also offered some encouraging advice. He said: “As long as you pass the medical, there’s no reason why anyone can’t become a diver. It’s a very accessible industry. The long-term investment over the last few years has been massive, and a lot of that has been fuelled by looking for new oil offshore. Last year there were 23 new dive support vessels in the process of being commissioned or built, so there’s a lot of work. And although the oil price has come down, things are still looking pretty good. There are other areas such as the offshore wind farm developments and many other things which offer opportunities.”
Although the basics might take a while to get to grips with for a beginner like me, the rewards are out there for those who build up experience and start specialising in specific areas of the industry. Dougie said “Guys who come here and train will typically, in the first couple of years, earn decent money without getting rich. If they stick at it and they’re any good at it, they’ll start earning a good living in years three, four and five. And at the other extreme, you’ve got the day rate for saturation diving, which is about £1200. That’s for guys who have been in the industry at least six or seven years and know it inside out. They’ll go offshore for 28 days at a time and only do that two or three times a year.”
But Dougie agrees that the dangers and the tough physical work which come with diving isn’t for everyone, which is where the other side of the Underwater Centre&rs