Lt. Jg. Mun Hee-woo (C) takes part in 12-week training to become a Navy deep sea diver in this photo provided by the Navy on Aug.
30, 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap) SEOUL, Aug. 30 (Korea Bizwire) — A Navy officer became South Korea’s first female deep sea diver in the Navy’s 78-year history on Friday, officials said, amid an ongoing push to broaden women’s role in various areas of the military.
Lt. Jg. Mun Hee-woo was among the 64 officers, noncommissioned officers and conscripts that completed the Navy’s basic training to join the Sea Salvage and Rescue Unit (SSU) in a ceremony held at Changwon, 298 kilometers southeast of Seoul, the Navy said.
The 27-year-old is the first female service member to apply for and complete the grueling 12-week course that trains applicants to become members of the elite unit. She also served on the frigate ROKS Daegu after being commissioned as an ensign in June 2022. While Mun felt that she had to test her limits during each and every day of the intensive training, she said her gender was never a hurdle.
“I felt confident that I could complete the training. I don’t think anyone would have known I was a woman unless someone told them so since I cut my hair short,” Mun said. What actually proved to be tougher than expected was her age.
“Rather than the gender difference, I was the oldest trainee and was eight years older than my youngest colleague, which made it difficult for me to recover quickly,” she said. “It was toug.