The company is on to a winner… a single-bag that retains the ruggedness of the classic BUDDY! [now renamed AP Commando] You get just the right amount of gizmos. The backpack with carrying handle works like a dream, as do all the straps and adjustments – its all classic AP, but lighter…The feature we like most are the enormous pockets. The two main pockets can easily accomodate a delayed SMB and crack bottle, back-up torches, spare mask, small reel, goody bag and more…In the water, it did its job; on the surface it excelled, giving plenty of lift…Excellent value for money.\”

Rating: Value: 9/10, Performance: 10/10 Overall: Top Performer 10/10

Charles Hood, DIVE Magazine TestZone, UK

The Tekwing delivers the whole nine yards on features and performance…

Diver Magazine, UK – John Bantin

After the first couple of dives, using the wing became second nature, which is exactly what makes a piece of kit good…

DIVE, UK – Charles Hood

I have owned my Buddy Commando Slimline stab jacket for over twenty years. In that time it has accompanied me on several thousand dives without any problems. The jacket is sturdy and dependable and has required no attention other than a service at AP Diving every four or five years. I have no hesitation in recommending AP Diving BCDs.

Kevin Camidge, Freelance Maritime Archaeologist and Archaeological Director of the Cornwall and Isles of Scilly Maritime Archaeology Society (CISMAS)

SCAPA TO TRUK, 6500+ dives, 25 books and only one BUDDY! Whether it’s a deepie on the S.SMAIDAN or a pootle on the S.S Tukia, from the cold waters of the North east to Truk Lagoon my BUDDY never misses a dive, used abused but trusted ……I never dive without it!

Peter Collings, Professional Photographer, Writer and Wreck Explorer. Founding member of the Red Sea Wreck Academy

Last summer I was very fortunate to win the Humorous category of the British Underwater Photography Championships in Plymouth and my prize was a Buddy Travelwing stab jacket. Being an old Mares fan for the last twenty years, I had always associated Buddy with those “high-viz” highly durable orange jackets often worn by older members of the diving fraternity. How wrong could I have been? The beautifully-made yellow and black jacket which arrived in the post bore no resemblance to the original Buddy. It has an optional integrated weight system which can be adapted instead to become two large mesh pockets which suited me much better and being a photographer needing to carry various gadgets, they could not be more useful. But the jewel in the crown was yet to come; quite apart from its new good looks, I have never worn a more comfortable jacket.

Joss Woolf – Chairman, The British Society of Underwater Photographers

If you dont want to use the weight integration then the pouch holders can be opened up to serve instead as two gigantic pockets – its all very clever. The shoulders and backpack are generously padded, making it comfortable when wearing a thinner wetsuit overseas. The Travelwing received several admiring glances and people on the boat were interested to see how I got on with it. The short answer is that it performed flawlessly. Its evident that AP Valves [now AP Diving] have designed this jacket from the bottom up rather than following a formulaic standard and produced exactly what you would expect from a travel wing style BC. Its not cheap; but it will probably last you a lifetime.

Charles Hood – SCUBA, official magazine of the BSAC, UK

I have used my BUDDY Commando for over 20 years and have dived all over the world. It is certainly a well-travelled jacket. I have dived extensively in Scotland, the Red Sea, the Canary Islands, Malta and I even took my own kit to dive in America…

I usually dive with a single cylinder but recently diving Scapa Flow I switched to twins and used the AP twinset straps for my BUDDY. As per usual I found no problem at all with the jacket…

I find my BUDDY great when taking trainees in as it feels safe and we do have quite a lot of people using the various AP jackets within the club. When asked by trainees which jackets to buy… without exception I always recommend AP BCDs.

Chris Lamb, SCOTSAC branch officer and regional instructor