05.12.2025.
Candidates training to become SAF divers
The light diver course involving NCOs and professional soldiers, candidates for diving positions in the River Flotilla’s diving unit, is underway on a section of the Danube river near Novi Sad.
The light diver course lasts six weeks and includes theoretical and demanding practical training preparing trainees for complex diving tasks on the rivers, canals and lakes in all weather conditions. The training is delivered by instructors from the River Flotilla’s diving unit.This training phase includes conditioning in a hyperbaric chamber, practising diving procedures on the river, diving using azimuth and isobaths, and practising tactical procedures for
carrying out counter-sabotage operations to protect ships in organized basing areas.
This training segment is being conducted at very low water temperatures and in limited visibility, which requires exceptional skill, physical fitness, mental strength and stability of divers.
Sergeant 1st Class Miša Obradov, an instructor and leader of a diving group, says that the leader is responsible for making sure that a candidate is ready and capable to perform a diving task.— The main responsibilities of a dive leader include assigning divers to buddy pairs, determining whether all divers are capable of performing the task at hand, selecting a task for a specific buddy pair and briefing them on the type of diving gear they will be using, as well as checking immediately before the dive whether the divers feel physically and mentally capable of performing the task —said Sergeant 1st Class Obradov.
One of the trainees, Sergeant Mirko Ćelić, shares his positive impressions after successfully completing his diving task.
— The training lasts six weeks. We are currently in the fifth week of training, after which we will have the final diver exam. The training is difficult and demanding both physically and mentally. What motivated me to apply for this course was the fact that the job is very interesting and exciting, just what I was looking for in the military and the profession - said Sergeant Ćelić.Successful completion of the light diver course is a prerequisite for admission to the River Flotilla’s diving unit. Upon admission to this unit, training continues for higher diving certification levels, and therefore for more complex tasks such as underwater demolition, mine countermeasures and counter-sabotage operations to protect critical infrastructure on inland waterways and search and rescue operations in all hydrometeorological conditions.
