EST. CIRCA 1952 THIRD GENERATION UNITED STATES

Three generations
deep.

Commercial diving, marine salvage, and motion-picture production from a family that has worked the water for more than seventy years.

70+ Years on the water
III Generations
Fathoms logged
Descend
Marine Salvage Motion Picture Diving Heavy Crane Operations Unique Vessel Charter USCG-Licensed Captains Three Generations Marine Salvage Motion Picture Diving Heavy Crane Operations Unique Vessel Charter USCG-Licensed Captains Three Generations
Chapter I  ·  Lineage

A family
of watermen.

The Byrd name has been on the water since the early 1950s — back when commercial diving meant hard hats, surface-supplied air, and trust in the man tending your line. Three generations later, the work is more technical and the gear has changed, but the standard has not.

We are the salvage crew called when the situation is complicated. We are the dive team trusted by directors of photography to put their camera, their talent, and their vision safely beneath the surface. We are captains, riggers, welders, and storytellers — and we have been doing this longer than most companies in the trade have been in business.

— The Byrd Family
1952 — 1980s
First GenerationFounder · Hard-hat diver
I.
1980s — 2000s
Second GenerationSalvage master · Captain
II.
2000s — Present
Chris ByrdThird Generation · Owner-Operator
III.
The next watch
In the wheelhouseThe fourth generation, learning the ropes
IV.
Discipline / 01

Marine
Salvage.

Sunken vessels, foundered barges, dropped cargo, fouled props, pier and pile work — when something needs to come up off the bottom, or stay down in a controlled way, we plan the lift and run the operation start to finish.

  • Vessel Refloating 01
  • Wreck Removal & Recovery 02
  • Dropped-Object Recovery 03
  • Heavy Rigging & Lift Engineering 04
  • Underwater Cutting & Welding 05
  • Marine Construction Support 06

Insured, USCG-compliant operations across coastal & inland waters.

Discipline / 02

Marine
Production.

The on-water arm of feature film, television, documentary, and commercial production. We supply vessels, safety divers, underwater rigging, marine coordination, and the boats and crews that make difficult shots possible.

  • Picture & Camera Boats 01
  • Safety & Stunt Diving 02
  • Underwater Rigging & Set Build 03
  • Marine Coordination & Permitting 04
  • Period & Picture Vessels 05
  • Talent Water Training & Coverage 06

Trusted by feature production, episodic, and commercial clients.

Some things go down on purpose.
Most don't. That's where we come in.

Salvage · Recovery · Refloat
Chapter II  ·  Manifest

The fleet.

A working flotilla — utility vessels, picture boats, crane platforms, and dive tenders. Some are workhorses. A few are unique enough to write their own page in the call sheet.

Vessel Role Capacity Status
001
Dive Tender — PrimaryCustom aluminum workboat

Primary dive platform for salvage and inspection work. Open deck, davit, dive ladder, and full surface-supply rigging.

28 ft · 6 crew In service
002
Crane BargeSpud-equipped lift platform

Heavy lift capacity for refloating, wreck removal, pile work, and dock construction support. Operated by ticketed crane operators.

Heavy lift On charter
003
Picture BoatPeriod & cinema-ready

A working vessel with the kind of character that reads on camera. Used for film, episodic, and commercial production.

Crew + cast Available
004
Camera & Safety SkiffFast pursuit

Low-profile chase boat for cinema rigs, safety standby, and on-water shuttle work.

3 crew In service
005
Push Boat & Tow RigFor the long days

Pushes barges, tows derelicts, holds station in current. The boat that gets the gear where it has to be.

Tow rated In service
Chapter III  ·  Crew

The people on deck.

№ 01

Licensed captains.

USCG-credentialed masters with the experience to read tide, traffic, and weather — and the discipline to call a shoot or a job when the water says no.

№ 02

Working divers.

Surface-supply and SCUBA-qualified divers trained for commercial work — cutting, welding, rigging, inspection, and the long, patient hours real underwater work demands.

№ 03

Top-tier crane operators.

Ticketed lift operators with the touch for marine work — precision picks on a moving platform, working with riggers and divers as one crew.

Chapter IV  ·  Selected Work

From the logbook.

Feature Film Recent

Picture-boat & safety diving
for major studio production.

ScopeMarine coordination CrewCaptain · Divers · Riggers
Salvage Recent

Sunken vessel refloat
and tow to repair facility.

ScopeRecovery & lift CrewDivers · Crane · Tow rig
Television Recent

Underwater rigging for an episodic series water sequence.

ScopeSet build & safety CrewRiggers · Safety divers
Marine Construction Recent

Pile work and heavy lift
support on coastal project.

ScopeConstruction support CrewCrane · Divers · Welders

When the job is complicated, expensive, or both — the call goes to a crew that has been doing the work long enough to have already seen it once.

A Working Standard, Since the 1950s

Tell us what's
on the water.

Project, picture, or problem — give us the situation and we will tell you honestly whether we are the crew for it. We respond to every inquiry.

Hail the wheelhouse
Telephone
(305) 635-1727
Direct line · Mon–Fri
Yard
3345 NW South River Drive
Miami, Florida 33142
Direct
info@byrddiving.com
Inquiries & bids
Production
production@byrddiving.com
Film & television
On Instagram
@chris_byrd_diving
Daily from the deck
Coverage
United States
Coastal & inland · travel for the right job