At Commercial Divers International in Goodyear, Arizona, trainees pack on over 150 pounds of gear before going underwater.
Many former military members train in tanks, eventually getting certified to weld and fix ships and water tanks across the world.
Jace Beals is one of the instructors at Commercial Divers International. Beals served in the U.S. Navy for eight years. During his service, he was a diver working in ships husbandry and was also part of submarine rescues.
Beals was one of the servicemen on the search and rescue team for the Argentine submarine in 2017.
"44 people were lost, so it does hit close to home,” Beals said. “Right now, in my body, I want to go help.”
The missing submersible going to tour the sunken Titanic, with five on board, reminds Beals back of his rescue missions.
"Everyone else who is working, that's their lives too,” Beals acknowledged. “They're putting them on the line to help."
"If there's still life in there, they're going to bang on the side walls. And hopefully they can hear them or use sonar to find them," Beals said. "My personal opinion: loss of life is significant if they can't find them soon."
As Beals passes his knowledge along to the next generation, he shares his focus for them:
"I tell the class two things…. I'm here to make the best divers I can as possible… and I'm here to keep them safe."
