Eliana María Krawczyk (5 March 1982 – 15 November 2017) was an

officer An officer is a person who has a position of authority in a hierarchical organization. The term derives from Old French ''oficier'' "officer, official" (early 14c., Modern French ''officier''), from Medieval Latin ''officiarius'' "an officer," fro ...

of the

Argentine Navy The Argentine Navy (ARA; ). This forms the basis for the navy's ship prefix "ARA". is the navy of Argentina. It is one of the three branches of the Armed Forces of the Argentine Republic, together with the Argentine Army, Army and the Argentine ...

. She was among the 44 crew members of the Argentine submarine ARA ''San Juan'' when it sank on 15 November 2017.

Early life and education

Eliana María Krawczyk was born on 5 March 1982 in

Oberá Oberá, formerly Svea, is a city in the Mesopotamia, Argentina, interfluvial province of Misiones Province, Misiones, Argentina, and the head town of the Oberá Department. It is located 96 km east of the provincial capital Posadas, Misiones, ...

Misiones Province Misiones (, ''Missions'') is one of the Provinces of Argentina, 23 provinces of Argentina, located in the northeastern corner of the country in the Mesopotamia, Argentina, Mesopotamia region. It is surrounded by Paraguay to the northwest, Brazil ...

, Argentina, to two Jewish Polish immigrants. She entered primary school at age five.

Career

In 2003, while studying

industrial engineering Industrial engineering (IE) is concerned with the design, improvement and installation of integrated systems of people, materials, information, equipment and energy. It draws upon specialized knowledge and skill in the mathematical, physical, an ...

in her hometown, Krawczyk learned through an

internet advertisement Online advertising, also known as online marketing, Internet advertising, digital advertising or web advertising, is a form of marketing and advertising that uses the Internet to promote products and services to audiences and platform users. ...

that the

was recruiting women. She traveled to

Posadas, Misiones Posadas () is the capital city of the Provinces of Argentina, Argentine province of Misiones Province, Misiones, in its south, at the far north-west of the country on the left bank of the Paraná River, opposite Encarnación, Paraguay. The city ...

to enlist that year and was enrolled at the the next year. She graduated in 2008 and was assigned to the ARA ''Libertad'' for training. It was here that she became interested in submarines. Once her eight-month training period had elapsed, she signed up for submarine training in

Mar del Plata Mar del Plata is a city on the coast of the Argentine Sea, Atlantic Ocean, in Buenos Aires Province, Argentina. It is the seat of General Pueyrredón Partido, General Pueyrredón district. Mar del Plata is the second largest city in Buenos Aires ...

. Krawczyk went to submarine school in 2012 and graduated at the top of her class. She was assigned first to the ARA ''Salta'', remaining there for four years. This posting made Krawczyk the first female submariner in Latin America. In 2016, she transferred to ARA ''San Juan''. On 8 October 2015, the Argentine Navy promoted Krawczyk to the rank of

Frigate lieutenant Frigate lieutenant is a naval rank in the naval forces of several countries. The rank of Frigate Lieutenant (officially Light Frigate Lieutenant, ) was a rank in the French Royal Navy until 1786. It was used by officers promoted from outside the ...

, making her the Navy's first female submarine officer. For this distinction, she was personally congratulated by , Vice President of the

Misiones Misiones (, ''Missions'') is one of the 23 provinces of Argentina, located in the northeastern corner of the country in the Mesopotamia region. It is surrounded by Paraguay to the northwest, Brazil to the north, east and south, and Corrientes P ...

Chamber of Representatives. She was promoted again, to

Lieutenant A lieutenant ( , ; abbreviated Lt., Lt, LT, Lieut and similar) is a Junior officer, junior commissioned officer rank in the armed forces of many nations, as well as fire services, emergency medical services, Security agency, security services ...

, by decree of the Argentine government on 17 March 2017.

Disappearance of ARA ''San Juan''

On 17 November 2017, ARA ''San Juan'' disappeared off the

San Jorge Gulf The San Jorge Gulf (Golfo San Jorge; Spanish language, Spanish for ''Gulf of Saint George, St. George'') is a bay in southern Patagonia, Argentina. It is an ocean basin opening to the Atlantic. Its shoreline spans Chubut Province, Chubut and Santa ...

while sailing to Mar del Plata after a military exercise. Krawczyk was among the 44 crew members aboard ARA ''San Juan'' when it disappeared. When the submarine was not located for a week, she and the rest of the crew were presumed dead by the Argentine government. The submarine's wreckage was found a year later underwater, from the San Jorge Gulf. At the time of the submarine's loss, Krawczyk was its third highest-ranking officer and the only woman aboard. Krawczyk's sister joined the search parties that continued to look for the missing submarine, but had left 10 days before the discovery of the wreck.

Legacy

To honor Krawczyk's memory, the city of Oberá announced 27 days after ARA ''San Juan''s disappearance that it would name a street after her. Argentina's Jewish community honored Krawczyk on

International Women's Day International Women's Day (IWD) is celebrated on 8 March, commemorating women's fight for equality and liberation along with the women's rights movement. International Women's Day gives focus to issues such as gender equality, reproductive righ ...

, 9 March 2018, in a ceremony at the Alvear Hotel in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

. 500 guests attended the event, including Rabbi Alejandro Avruj and politicians Carolina Stanley and

Patricia Bullrich Patricia Bullrich (; born 11 June 1956) is an Argentine professor and politician who was appointed Ministry of Security (Argentina), Minister of National Security in 2023 under president Javier Milei, having previously held the office under pres ...

Citations

{{DEFAULTSORT:Krawczyk, Eliana 1982 births 2010s missing person cases 2017 deaths Argentine Navy officers Argentine people of Polish-Jewish descent Missing person cases in Argentina People from Oberá People who died at sea