Document de référence gratuit · Mindful Diving Institute
Scuba diving hand signals
Les signes ci-dessous sont ceux que les plongeurs utilisent réellement. Ils servent de référence, pas de norme : votre formation auprès de votre organisme et votre briefing avant la plongée déterminent ceux que vous utilisez dans l’eau. Convenez-en avec votre binôme avant chaque plongée — y compris ceux qui vous semblent évidents.
Cette page complète les standards de sécurité et les formations de SSI, PADI, CMAS, RAID et des autres organismes, sans jamais s’y substituer. Les signaux sont convenus lors du briefing. N’utilisez jamais de pratiques de pleine conscience pendant les phases où l’exécution des tâches est critique, et ne retenez jamais votre respiration en plongée avec scaphandre.
The essential five
Agreed before every dive, by every diver, in every language.
OK
Comment
Thumb and index finger joined in a circle, the other three fingers extended. With gloves or at distance, arm over the head in a circle.Moyens
Both a question and an answer. Asked, it must be answered — silence is not an OK.Not OK / problem
Comment
Flat hand, palm down, rocked side to side, then point at what is wrong.Moyens
Something is off. Say it early, at amber, not late at red.Up / end the dive
Comment
Closed fist, thumb up.Moyens
An instruction, not an opinion. Any diver may end any dive, at any time, without giving a reason.Down / descend
Comment
Closed fist, thumb down.Moyens
Begin or continue the descent, at the agreed rate.Stop / hold
Comment
Flat open palm facing the buddy.Moyens
Stop adding tasks and stabilise here. The most under-used signal in diving.
Gas and pressure
Numbers vary by agency and by region. Agree yours on the surface.
How much gas?
Comment
Flat hand tapped twice against the open palm of the other hand, or two fingers to the palm.Moyens
Answer with numbers, honestly and immediately.Half / turn pressure
Comment
Flat hand held horizontally at chest height, or the agreed number shown on fingers.Moyens
The turn point of the dive plan has arrived.Low on gas
Comment
Closed fist to the centre of the chest.Moyens
Reserve reached. Begin the ascent plan now, together.Out of gas
Comment
Flat hand drawn across the throat.Moyens
An emergency. Follow the out-of-gas procedure you trained with your agency and rehearsed with this buddy.Share gas
Comment
Fingers of a flat hand brought to the mouth, then reaching toward the buddy's alternate.Moyens
Give me your alternate air source. Practised on land, then in shallow water, before it is needed.
Direction, depth and pace
Most task-loading happens here. Keep signals slow and single.
Look / watch me
Comment
Two fingers pointed toward your own eyes, then toward the object.Moyens
Direct your attention here.Go that way
Comment
Flat hand held vertically, fingers pointing in the direction of travel.Moyens
The agreed heading.Slow down
Comment
Flat hand, palm down, pressed gently downward.Moyens
Reduce pace and workload. Almost always the right answer.Level off / stay at this depth
Comment
Flat hand, palm down, held steady and horizontal.Moyens
Hold this depth.Safety stop
Comment
Three fingers raised over a flat horizontal hand: three minutes, five metres.Moyens
Hold the stop as planned. A good moment for slow, continuous breathing — nothing else.Stay together
Comment
Two index fingers held side by side.Moyens
Close the distance and dive as a pair.
Problems and the body
Naming a small problem early is the whole skill.
Ear problem
Comment
Point to the ear.Moyens
Equalisation is not working. Stop the descent, ascend slightly, try again gently. Never force.Cold
Comment
Arms crossed over the chest, hands rubbing the upper arms.Moyens
Thermal reserve is going. Cold is a common quiet cause of anxiety and short dives.Cramp
Comment
Two fists brought together and pulled apart.Moyens
Stop, stretch, let the buddy help.Slow your breathing
Comment
Flat hand moved slowly up and down in front of the chest.Moyens
Return to slow, continuous breathing. Never breath-holding, skip-breathing or hypoventilation.Dizzy / disoriented
Comment
Index finger circled beside the head.Moyens
Hold on to something stable, hold depth, signal the buddy and end the dive if it persists.
La galerie de l’eau
Trois ajouts convenus ensemble en surface
Les signaux standard sont excellents pour les urgences, mais ne disent presque rien de l'état qui les précède. Ces trois signaux sont convenus dans l'accord entre binômes avant la mise à l'eau, en complément — jamais en remplacement — des signaux de votre organisme.
Amber
Flat hand tilted side to side, then the OK question. Agreed in the Buddy Agreement before entry.
I am not in trouble, and I am not fine. Slow down, stay close, check me again in a minute.
Settle
Open palm lowered slowly, held still for one full breath cycle.
Nothing is wrong. Take one breath here before the next task. The in-water form of STILL.
Notice this
Two fingers to the eyes, then held open toward the water rather than at an object.
Not a fish or a hazard — the whole scene. An invitation to look wide for a moment.
Fiches de révision
Un signe à la fois. Lisez son nom, imaginez la main, puis retournez la carte pour vérifier sa forme et son sens.
Vérification rapide
Huit signes, chacun sa forme. Chaque réponse est expliquée — le sens compte plus que le score.
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Questions fréquentes
Are scuba hand signals the same in every agency and country?
The essential signals — OK, up, down, stop, out of gas — are effectively universal across SSI, PADI, CMAS, RAID and others. Beyond those, details differ by agency, region and dive site. That is why the briefing, not the internet, is the final authority: agree your signals with your buddy and guide before every dive.
What is the most important hand signal in diving?
The thumb up. It ends the dive, it is an instruction rather than a request, and any diver may give it at any time without providing a reason. A close second is the flat open palm — stop — because most incidents grow out of tasks added on top of a situation that was already full.
Why is thumb up 'ascend' rather than OK?
Because on land the thumb up means approval, and underwater it means end the dive. Confusing the two costs dives and occasionally more. Underwater, OK is always the finger-and-thumb circle, never the thumb alone.
How do I signal that I am anxious but not in danger?
Most standard signal sets have no word for this, which is why divers stay silent until the situation is red. Mindful Diving™ adds an agreed amber signal — not in trouble, not fine — so the pair can slow down and stay close early. It is agreed on the surface in the Buddy Agreement and never replaces an agency signal.
Can I practise hand signals before diving?
Yes, and it is the cheapest safety practice there is. Run through the whole set on land with your buddy, then again with masks on in shallow water. Signals you have rehearsed together arrive faster than signals you have only read.
Là où les signaux deviennent présence.
MD-1 Mindful Diver™ fait pratiquer l’accord avant la plongée, le signal précoce et la réponse posée jusqu’à ce qu’ils soient disponibles au moment nécessaire — dans le cadre de la certification que vous détenez déjà auprès de votre organisme.
Le silence a son langage.