In order to make scuba diving comfortable and safe, you should always dive with a buddy. It is considered very irresponsible to ever dive alone. To make scuba diving even more fun, here are some things you should do in order to be a good buddy.

Plan your dive.

After the initial instructions for the dive that you will get from your dive master in the dive briefing (how deep, how far, how long), you should discuss with your buddy what you want to do within these parameters. Make sure you have similar interests in how much territory you want to cover, whether or not you want to use underwater photography, how closely you want to follow your dive master and similar issues.

Agree on a comfort zone.

Within the agreed parameters of the dive you should adept to the most cautious or most inexperienced buddy, in order to make sure that everyone is comfortable and feels safe. For example, some people like to explore caves, while others do not have the experience to do so or are claustrophobic.

Small buddy groups.

The smaller your buddy group is, the easier it is to keep track of all your buddies. It is hardly possible to keep an eye on more than four people. It is therefore recommended to dive together in pairs. However, if there are an odd number of divers in the group a buddy group can contain three buddies.

Buddy-check.

Once you and your buddy are both geared up before the dive, it is time for a buddy check, where you visually inspect each others gear. You can do this according to the acronym BWRAF, which stands for BCD - Weights – Releases – Air Supply – Final OK. There are easier ways to remember this: Bruce Willis Releases Awful Films; Bangkok Women Really Are Fellows; Beer Whiskey Rum And Fall over; and the most naughty of all Before W**king Reconsider A F***. Take your pick, whichever is easiest for you to remember. While following this acronym you carefully inspect your buddy’s gear and afterwards your buddy returns the favour. Now you are ready to go dive.

Keep an eye on each other during the dive.

It is very important not to loose sight of your buddy while diving, in case he or she gets into trouble. Buddies can choose to swim next to each other and even hold hands, in order to stay close together. You can also lead or follow your buddy, but make sure that the leader regularly checks what happens behind. The follower can get the leaders attention by gently pulling the fin. Depending on the visibility under water and your level of experience you can decide what is the most comfortable way of buddying up for you. Make sure you discuss which system you will use with your buddy before the dive.

Communication.

In order to make sure you and your buddy stay out of trouble it is important to communicate as much as possible during the dive. Make eye contact regularly and use the common hand signals you have learned during your training for certification. Check with your buddy before the dive that you understand each others hand signals, just to make sure. Hand signals are important to keep track of each others air supply, to notify each other of any problem, but they can also be used for a more fun purpose: showing your buddy interesting things or species you have spotted under water.

Aborting the dive.

Agree with your buddy that you are both free to abort the dive if one of you has second thoughts about safety, skills, dive conditions, health or any other situation that makes you feel uncomfortable to continue the dive (other than the slight edginess a beginner might have). It is a decision both should respect without making a big deal out of it. If you are aborting a dive, stay close together until you both surface and are in sight of the dive crew on the boat or shore. Discuss the reason for abortion of the dive afterwards and learn a lesson from it for future dives.