Pushing to the limitsA firm grounding in physical fitness and mental agility is provided to all trainee divers during the training process at NDU. As in all cases, training builds the competence required to perform the job. However, it is a little different in the NDU, where every trainee diver knows that the training will either “make or break” him, depending on his determination to persevere through the rigorous training.
It takes about six months for a trainee diver coming straight from Basic Military Training to complete his Class 2 Diving Course, where theoretical and practical knowledge on diving is imparted.
To build up the traineesÂ’ water confidence level and their knowledge of how their equipment would perform underwater, a pool competency course is conducted in the first half of the course. Under the watchful eyes of the safety officer, trainee divers are subjected to simulated stress akin to actual underwater conditions.
Each diverÂ’s performance is closely monitored to ensure that he is competent in managing potential underwater problems. During these drills, all trainees must maintain a cool composure and alert mind to be able to extricate themselves from the problems that they face underwater.
After he clears this stage, a week of sweat and toil awaits him. Popularly known as ‘hell week’, the old adage - the survival of the fittest - certainly applies here. Hell week means a gruelling 120 hours of non-stop physical exertion both on land and in water, with trainees allowed three hours of sleep only on the third day. Only the best will make it.
“The aim of hell week is to let each individual know that he can be pushed beyond his limits. There is a saying that the human brain is about 10 times stronger than the body. There’s no way you can test a person’s psychological strength until you break his physical strength first.
So the first three days of hell week are very physical. However, you must keep on going if you want to succeed. Those who quit will be deemed unsuitable to be naval divers. You have to be a team player to survive. There’s no ‘Rambo’ in the Navy.”
If you thought that hell week would be the culmination of training, guess again. Naval divers have to brace themselves for another three months of basic combat training before they can graduate from the course.
In this last phase, trainees are taught the rudiments of combat tactics. In an exercise called drown-proofing, trainee divers are dumped unceremoniously into the pool with their hands and legs tied. They are then required to bob up and down in the pool, swim for about 100 metres and perform manoeuvres like somersaults underwater.