Completely new to this, brought a setup a while ago but didn't use it and now I have more time I'm hoping to get out and give it ago soon, Live in Devon and was wondering what flag I should have on my kayak/buoy? Is it the blue and white Alfa flag or the red with white stripe flag?
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- Thread starterNdevonfarmer
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Thread Status: Hello
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You need the blue and white Alpha flag, it is the diver down flag and should be recognised by anyone in a boat................. well in an ideal world! Keep safe out there and good luck 
Yes, blue & white alpha-flag.
It is a good (& timely) question. The Alpha-flag is what the British, European, African, Commonweath & International standard. It is also required in British spearfishing competitions. The USA recognizes the blue & white alpha flag (particularly for boats) too but they also have the red flag with white slash as well, which is a pity as it is hard enough to educate boaters, etc. about one flag.
http://usfa.org.au/look-out-divers-about/
It is a good (& timely) question. The Alpha-flag is what the British, European, African, Commonweath & International standard. It is also required in British spearfishing competitions. The USA recognizes the blue & white alpha flag (particularly for boats) too but they also have the red flag with white slash as well, which is a pity as it is hard enough to educate boaters, etc. about one flag.
http://usfa.org.au/look-out-divers-about/
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The same in California. Almost no one would know what an alpha flag is. The red and white flag is much more widely recognized, even if its often ignored.
Maybe a waterproof Megaphone with a horn would deter them.
"Hey YOU! Yeah you in that dingy of a boat! I'm trying to dive over here! Yeah? What'd you say? Come in the water and say that to me! Yeah same to you pal. Hope you end up as chum."
Ya gotta picture it with Brooklyn dialect. [emoji1]
Sent from my Samsung using Tapatalk
"Hey YOU! Yeah you in that dingy of a boat! I'm trying to dive over here! Yeah? What'd you say? Come in the water and say that to me! Yeah same to you pal. Hope you end up as chum."
Ya gotta picture it with Brooklyn dialect. [emoji1]
Sent from my Samsung using Tapatalk
American perspective:
I have seen 3 other alternatives (love standards can never get enough of them!) although I couldn't recommend any them:
1. A logo flag with a picture of a diver on it - for those that don't know flags presumably - but how close would you need to be to see it (and then understand it)?
2. Flag of the state of Texas (nice one)
3. Red & luminous white/green Croix de St. Andre flag
Perhaps we could get a Worldwide sponsor to provide us all with one dive-flag & publicity - perhaps "the Golden Arches" or Mickey Mouse?
Maybe you should fly both flags, keep your eyes & ears open and cross your fingers
I have seen 3 other alternatives (love standards can never get enough of them!) although I couldn't recommend any them:
1. A logo flag with a picture of a diver on it - for those that don't know flags presumably - but how close would you need to be to see it (and then understand it)?
2. Flag of the state of Texas (nice one
)3. Red & luminous white/green Croix de St. Andre flag
Perhaps we could get a Worldwide sponsor to provide us all with one dive-flag & publicity - perhaps "the Golden Arches" or Mickey Mouse?
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Hi Bill, I am surprised. Don't you fly an alpha flag from your boat when you have divers in the water? I thought that was required (or at least recommended) in the USA. I saw at one US (state level., I think) website that they require both flags to be flown from dive boats.
Templates to make your own Alpha dive flag: https://mdtv3.files.wordpress.com/2012/02/diveflag.pdf
[Which comes from #6 on this blog page: https://mdtv3.wordpress.com/scuba-diving/ ]
[Which comes from #6 on this blog page: https://mdtv3.wordpress.com/scuba-diving/ ]
I don't fly an alpha flag since it's not widely recognized by recreational boaters. Like so many things in the US it varies by state, but California has no requirement to fly any flag. If states can't even concur on something like capital punishment then how could they be expected to agree on dive flags? I do fly the red and white flag and most divers do.
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Very interesting!! Florida requires use of the red and white flag, with picky requirements that can get you a ticket if you don't know the fine print. Feds require the alpha flag, but don't bother to tell anybody. That is the first I EVER heard of a Federal requirement that was different from the state.
Ridiculous
Many divers in Florida, me included, just ignore all of it.
Ridiculous
Many divers in Florida, me included, just ignore all of it.
No I had not. It seems that federal regulations do require the Alpha flag, but I wonder if that applies only if Federal waters, but not in state waters? All I can say for sure is that I almost never see one.
And I note that the section on California is someone's best guess on what the state regulations are. Could it be that the regulations requiring the red and white flag apply only in harbors? This reminds me of a story told on another forum last year. A guy that I know was diving off the coast of the Palos Verdes Peninsula and the Los Angeles Harbor police came out and gave him a ticket. He got it thrown out. It may have been that those police didn't have jurisdiction, but my impression is that the law didn't apply where my friend was.
Notice the confusion on the distance other boats have to maintain from the dive boat. If its 200 feet, I'll confess that this would often not do us much good. We free dive spear fisherman are often 200 or 300 yards from our boats. I'm not saying that we should own the entire ocean just because we are in the water. We can't expect other boats to give us 300 yards. Its really our problem, and all we can hope is that boaters keep a sharp lookout, but of course that doesn't happen.
I've also wondered about the part that says its a violation to fly the divers flag when no divers are in the water. Many of the big dive boats that take crowds of divers for hire have a huge diver's flag painted on the side of the hull or superstructure. Is that considered "flying the flag"" Its always there, even when they are underway.