page_title: Diver down flag
section_title: The red and white flag
hierarchical_section_title: Diver down flag / The red and white flag
caption_attribution_description: English: Diver Down Flag being flown on a dive ship
context_page_description: A diver down flag, or scuba flag, is a flag used on the water to indicate that there is a diver below. Two styles of flag are in use. Internationally, the code flag alfa/alpha, which is white and blue, is used to signal that the vessel has a diver down and other vessels should keep well clear at slow speed. In North America it is conventionally red with a white stripe from the upper left corner to the lower right corner.
context_section_description: The use of the red and white flag, which was created in 1956 by Navy veteran Denzel James Dockery and popularised by Ted Nixon of US Divers, is required by law or regulation in many US states, Canada, and some other countries (e.g. Italy). Usually the regulations require divers to display the flag while diving and to stay within a specified distance of it when they are near the surface. There may also be a larger zone around the flag where no boats are allowed to pass. Some states also prohibit the display of this flag when there is no diver in water. It can be placed on a boat or on a surface marker buoy.
caption: Diver down flag being flown on a dive ship
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