Training agency
RAID International
A diver training agency with a recreational Cavern Diver course and a technical Cave 1 and Cave 2 sequence taught in twinset or sidemount.
RAID publishes a recreational Cavern Diver course and technical Cave 1 and Cave 2 courses on a single cave-courses page [1]. Cavern Diver keeps divers in the cavern zone, where daylight is the main light source, and RAID's page gives a 60 m penetration limit and a 10 m minimum starting visibility. Cave 1 focuses on fundamental cave safety and emergency response; Cave 2 adds stage-cylinder use and complex navigation [1].
When RAID introduced the cave programmes in 2017, Scubaverse reported that they were written by Jill Heinerth and Steve Lewis, required twinset or sidemount, and that Cave 1 allowed limited penetrations of up to 300 m with one tee [2]. RAID's current page does not restate the Cave 1 figures.
3 courses
Cave-related courses
As published on the organisation's own course or standards pages; the official page is the authority. Similar names elsewhere are not automatically equivalent.
| Course | Prerequisites | Scope and published limits |
|---|---|---|
| RAID Cavern Diver ↗Cavern · checked 2026-10-14 | Before entering the overhead, students must show buoyancy control (hover within about 50 cm), non-silting propulsion and a backward kick. Formal certification prerequisites are not stated on the cave-courses page. | A non-technical overhead course in the cavern zone, defined by RAID as the part of the overhead where daylight is the primary light source. Academic review, equipment configuration workshop, land drills and confined-water skills, then at least four dives totalling at least four hours in the cavern zone.As published: penetration up to 60 m from the surface, all within the light zone; minimum starting visibility 10 m; primary light burn time at least one hour longer than the planned dive. |
| RAID Cave 2 ↗Full cave · checked 2026-10-14 | RAID Cave 1 is the expected route; divers from other training streams are accepted. | Primarily a complex navigation course (jumps, gaps, tees, traverses and circuits), plus use of a stage cylinder and emphasis on understanding the fragile cave environment.RAID's current page states no numeric limits. The 2017 launch report said penetration is not limited and that divers may complete limited decompression with one stage cylinder. |
| RAID Cave 1 ↗Intro cave · checked 2026-10-14 | — | RAID's cave fundamentals course, focused on diving caves safely and responding to emergencies, including entanglement, line repair and buddy rescue. Technical open circuit in twinset or sidemount.RAID's current page gives no numeric limits. A 2017 trade-press report of the course launch said Cave 1 divers may make limited penetrations of up to 300 m and one tee. |
Further reading
Every fact on this page, with its source (2)
| Fact | Status | Source |
|---|---|---|
| RAID offers a recreational Cavern Diver course and technical Cave 1 and Cave 2 courses. | Verified | [1] |
| RAID's Cave 1 and Cave 2 programmes were reported in 2017 as written by Jill Heinerth and Steve Lewis.Trade press report from 2017; RAID's current page says only that the courses were developed by experienced cave divers and instructors. | Reported | [2] |
Verified: stated by an official or primary source we opened. Reported: from a secondary source only. Sources conflict: the note gives both versions. May be out of date: the newest source we found is old.
Written in our own words from the sources above. Report a correction