PADI Recreational Dive Planner (RDP) 5

Question 1

A diver plans three dives in one day. Which of the following is the MOST conservative planning approach?

Accepted Answer

Start with the deepest dive and gradually ascend to shallower depths on each subsequent dive

Answer

Starting with the deepest dive and ending with the shallowest minimizes residual nitrogen accumulation and follows RDP best practices.

Question 2

If a diver wants to make three dives in one day using the RDP, how are the planning steps connected between dives?

Accepted Answer

The ending pressure group of each dive becomes the starting pressure group for the next surface interval calculation

Answer

The end pressure group of Dive 1 feeds into Table 2 for the surface interval, then Table 3 for Dive 2, and the same chain continues for Dive 3.

Question 3

When planning a dive at altitude using the PADI RDP, what adjustment must be made?

Accepted Answer

Use the altitude-adjusted RDP tables or special procedures because reduced atmospheric pressure changes nitrogen absorption rates

Answer

At altitude, the reduced atmospheric pressure means nitrogen behaves differently, requiring special altitude dive planning procedures.

Question 4

What does it mean if a diver's planned Total Bottom Time (TBT) exceeds the NDL for their repetitive dive depth?

Accepted Answer

The planned dive is not permitted as a recreational dive — the diver must reduce either depth or time

Answer

When TBT exceeds the NDL, the dive violates no-decompression limits and is not permitted in recreational diving — either depth or time must be reduced.

Question 5

Which symptom is MOST associated with decompression sickness (DCS), the risk the RDP is designed to minimize?

Accepted Answer

Joint pain, skin rash, numbness, or paralysis after surfacing

Answer

DCS symptoms — joint pain, neurological symptoms, skin mottling — result from nitrogen bubbles forming in tissues when a diver ascends too quickly or exceeds NDLs.

PADI - Professional Association of Diving Instructors Practice Test

PADI - Professional Association of Diving Instructors Practice Test

PADI Recreational Dive Planner (RDP) 5