team diving skills

[FMT]

Discussing the dive plan and covering emergency plans like OOA are part of team based diving. Team based diving also entails a critical look at what is required for the level of the dive. I have said many times that my choice in diving team will narrow greatly from a shallow fish and coral dive to a deep trimix dive. My deep dive team are people I know and trust and we all plan and practice. Proper planning and practice means that the situation of someone spitting out the donated long hose is not likely to happen (miniscule really).
A fear of something that is very unlikely, while understandable, is easy to overcome with some knowledge and practice.
For this particular situation where the long hose is rejected and then the short hose is taken, it comes down to who is in control of the situation. The donatOR is the one in control. They are the one who is not in a full-bore panic. They are the one who can take a minute (yes you can handle not having a breathing source for a minute) to sort out the mess and get the long hose back. And once everyone has gas to breathe the donator will use that control to calm the situation and get them back home safely (even switching the OOA diver to the long hose once calm has been restored).
I have had to hand off the octo if you count having to hand the octo off to myself because of a failed mouthpiece on my primary. This doesn't really count because I knew I had the situation either handled myself or I would go to my buddy. I have seen it happen from the outside once (where I was not the donator).
Tom, if you want to practice and see for yourself with the long hose I'm sure one of us can hook you up either at a pool session or at the lake.
T