She was, in all but name, part of the military’s top-tier Special Operations forces. Officially a chief petty officer in the Navy, she actually worked closely with the nation’s most secretive intelligence outfit, the National Security Agency, to target leaders of the Islamic State.

…Chief Kent spoke a half-dozen Arabic dialects and four other languages. She was one of the first women to complete the rigorous course required for other troops to accompany Navy SEALs on raids. She could run a 3:30 marathon, do a dozen full-arm-hang pull-ups and march for miles with a 50-pound rucksack.

…Chief Kent developed skills that have become critical over the last two decades, including the immediate exploitation of documents, hard drives and other intelligence found during raids, and sophisticated methods of targeting that combined eavesdropping, human intelligence and relationship mapping.

…Chief Kent illustrates an unspoken truth: that for many years women have been doing military jobs as dangerous, secretive and specialized as anything men do.

She would sometimes muse that conversation — even with people who had top security clearances — would be simpler if she could just join a Special Operations unit.

…“Women have been on the front lines with special operators for 16 years,” said Gayle Tzemach Lemmon, author of a book about female troops working with elite forces in the combat zones of Afghanistan. “But because that community is unseen and so rarely talks about their work, it’s been hard to know how much women have done.”

…This week, the Navy modified its rules to make it easier for enlisted service members who wish to become officers to petition for medical waivers.

“The Navy fixed everything that kind of screwed Shannon,” Mr. Kent said.

Her Title: Cryptologic Technician. Her Occupation: Warrior. – The New York Times

hmmmm