Adrienne Rubinkowski: Submarine Surveillance and Logistics

By Nancy Lynk, Honor Flight Chicago Veteran Interview Volunteer

Born on the northwest side of Chicago in 1953, LCDR Adrienne Lee Rubinkowski moved with her family to Rolling Meadows, IL at age 3 and resides there to this day.

While Adrienne was an undergraduate student at the University of Illinois, Champaign-Urbana, studying towards a degree in Research Biology, Congress changed the laws that excluded females from entering the military academies. This change also opened university ROTC to women and created an intense “two-year program” to allow women to catch up on the first two years of ROTC training during the summer between their sophomore and junior years, and then complete training during junior and senior years. The daughter of a Navy sailor father, who served during WWII, and a mother who worked for the Navy’s Bureau of Ships in Chicago during the war, Adrienne naturally gravitated to Naval ROTC. She was commissioned an Ensign in the United States Navy on May 28, 1975, the first female ever commissioned through NROTC.

After training the summer of 1975 at AntiSubmarine Warfare School in Key West, FL (Undersea Surveillance) and Communication Officer School in Newport, Rhode Island, her first duty assignment was at U.S. Naval Facility, Eleuthera, Bahamas where she served as an Operations Watch Officer, Assistant Communications Division Officer, Research Division Officer, and Administrative Department Head. She was promoted to Lieutenant (Junior Grade) in May 1977 and transferred to Norfolk VA, in August 1977.

Stationed at Commander Oceanographic Systems Atlantic (COMOCEANSYSLANT), the Navy’s HQ for the eastern half of the world’s Undersea Surveillance System, from September 1977 through December 1980, then LTJG Rubinkowski served with the Surveillance Towed Array Sensor System Engineering Development Model (SURTASS EDM) and as a Main Evaluation Center Watch Officer. She was promoted to Lieutenant in May 1979, and served as COMOCEANSYSLANT System Director of Communications, a position normally held by a full Commander, until her transfer to San Diego, CA in December 1980.

At this point in her career, Lt. Rubinkowski switched focus away from surveillance and she served the first two years at Recruit Training Command, San Diego, as Basic Military Training Officer (in charge of all recruit academic training), Recruit Division Officer (in charge of eight, 88-man companies of recruits), and Assistant Military Training Officer (in charge of nine recruit divisions). Her final 1 ½ years in San Diego were spent as Director of Apprenticeship Training, providing 4-week courses in basic seamanship, airmanship, and engineering to recent graduates in preparation for their first fleet duty stations. She was promoted to Lieutenant Commander in May 1983 and transferred to Washington DC, in May 1984.

Assigned to the Navy’s Undersea Surveillance Program Office, LCDR Rubinkowski served 3 ½ years as an electronic systems logistics specialist, responsible for producing training manuals for new systems and for conducting factory acceptance testing for newly installed systems at stateside Naval Facility sites. She was also intimately involved in designing a completely new processing facility at Naval Air Station Whidbey Island, Washington.

For two years starting in July 1987, Lt. Rubinkowski was stationed in Naples, Italy as Assistant Plans Officer on the staff of Commander Antisubmarine Warfare Forces 6^th Fleet, a multi-domain, integrated network of submarines, surface warships, aircraft, and unmanned systems designed to detect, track, and neutralize enemy submarines. In this role her duty was coordinating all ASW operations in the Mediterranean among U.S. and NATO forces.

In 1989, she transferred back to the U.S. and assumed command of Personnel Support Activity, Cleveland, OH, where her five branch offices provided administrative, personnel, and pay record support for all active duty and reserve Navy personnel in a seven state area, as well as coordinating all transportation for all branches of the military in that area.

LCDR Rubinkowski wrapped up her 20 year service career when she returned “home” to Recruit Training Command, Great Lakes, IL where she served as Director of Apprentice Training for two years and as Command Training Support Officer, responsible for the entire base logistics and physical plant. She retired from the Navy in September, 1994. Her post Navy career was working for a manufacturing firm in front office administration and quality control roles. She was an “all hands on deck” (pun intended) team member and was part of a period of great growth for the company. Retired from there, she maintains a busy life and remains connected to many of her fellow service members.

During 20 years of service which included some tremendous responsibilities and intense experiences, when asked if she was ever scared or concerned, Lt. Rubinkowski’s immediate answer was during the Gulf War when she had to prepare recruits and their families for what was an unexpected deployment. A true dedicated service member, her concern was for others first. We humbly thank her for her service and dedication to our country.