Aqua Lung

The story begins in 1943, when French naval officer Jacques-Yves Cousteau and engineer Émile Gagnan developed the first self-contained underwater breathing apparatus, which they called the "Aqua-Lung". This invention fundamentally changed underwater exploration. Three years later, in 1946, Cousteau, Gagnan, and Jean Delorme of Air Liquide founded the company La Spirotechnique to mass-produce their invention. The company quickly expanded internationally. In the United States, it became known as U.S. Divers. Over the decades, the company grew by acquiring other brands, including Technisub, Seaquest, and Apeks, expanding its portfolio of diving equipment. The various brand names were consolidated under the Aqua Lung name in the late 1990s. After being a part of Air Liquide for decades, Aqua Lung was sold to private equity firm Montagu in late 2016. This marked a new chapter for the company, focusing on growth within the recreational and professional diving markets. Following a period of financial difficulty, the company was acquired by Barings LLC in December 2023. In a significant industry development, the HEAD Group, which also owns the Mares and SSI brands, acquired Aqua Lung in June 2025, committing over €50 million to restructure and stabilize the iconic brand's future.