BOARD DATE: 1 December 2009 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20090011619 THE BOARD CONSIDERED THE FOLLOWING EVIDENCE: 1. Application for correction of military records (with supporting documents provided, if any). 2. Military Personnel Records and advisory opinions (if any). THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant requests correction of his DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty) to show his overseas service. 2. The applicant states his overseas service is not on his records. 3. The applicant provides copies of six Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) Forms 702 (Leave and Earnings Statement (LES)); an information paper, subject: Deployment Tax Issues, dated 18 March 1998; Headquarters, 3rd Infantry Division (Mechanized), Fort Stewart, GA, Permanent Orders 47-5, 47-6, 47-7, and 47-8, all dated 16 February 1998; a Coalition Task Force Kuwait Certificate of Achievement; and an extract of Public Health Service (PHS) 731 (International Certificate of Vaccination) in support of this application. CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. Title 10, U.S. Code, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military records must be filed within 3 years after discovery of the alleged error or injustice. This provision of law also allows the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) to excuse an applicant’s failure to timely file within the 3-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to do so. While it appears the applicant did not file within the time frame provided in the statute of limitations, the ABCMR has elected to conduct a substantive review of this case and, only to the extent relief, if any, is granted, has determined it is in the interest of justice to excuse the applicant’s failure to timely file. In all other respects, there are insufficient bases to waive the statute of limitations for timely filing. 2. The applicant's military records show he enlisted in the Regular Army (RA) on 20 March 1997. He was awarded military occupational specialty (MOS) 13M (multiple launch rocket system (MLRS) crewmember). He was advanced to the rank/grade of specialist (SPC)/E-4 on 1 June 1998. 3. In the processing of this case the Board's staff contacted the Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS). By email, DFAS established that the applicant received hostile fire pay/imminent danger pay (HFP/IDP) and served in a combat zone tax exclusion (CZTE) area for service in Kuwait from 21 February 1998 to 6 July 1998. 4. The DFAS Forms 702 provided by the applicant show he received foreign duty pay for the period 21 February to 6 July 1998. 5. The applicant was honorably released from active duty on 19 March 2000 by reason of completion of required active service and he was transferred to the U.S. Army Reserve (USAR) Control Group (Reinforcement) to complete his remaining Reserve obligation. He completed 3 years of creditable active service. 6. A copy of an extract of his PHS 731 provided by the applicant indicates he received vaccinations while in Kuwait in March and April 1998. 7. Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents), in effect at the time, prescribed the separation documents prepared for Soldiers upon retirement, discharge, or release from active military service or control of the Army. It established standardized policy for the preparation of the DD Form 214. It stated that for item 12f (Foreign Service), enter the total amount of foreign service completed during the period covered in block 12c (Net Active Service This Period). 8. Army Regulation 635-5, in effect at the time, did not provide for deployments to be recorded on the Soldier's DD Form 214; however, the current version of the regulation prescribes in pertinent part that for an active duty Soldier deployed with his or her unit during their continuous period of active service, enter the statement "SERVICE IN (NAME OF COUNTRY DEPLOYED) FROM (inclusive dates for example, YYYYMMDD-YYYYMMDD)" in item 18 (Remarks). DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: 1. DFAS records and the applicant's DFAS Forms 702 provide evidence that he served overseas in Kuwait for 4 months and 16 days during the period covered by his DD Form 214. Since the preponderance of evidence indicates he served in Kuwait during the period 21 February to 6 July 1998, it would be appropriate to correct his DD Form 214 to show this foreign service. 2. While the regulation in effect at the time did not provide for deployments to be recorded on a Soldier's DD Form 214, it would be in the interest of equity to apply the current standards to enter the applicant's deployment on his DD Form 214. BOARD VOTE: ___x____ ___x____ ____x___ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by: a. deleting from item 12f of his DD Form 214 the entry "0000 00 00" and replacing it with the entry "0000 04 16"; and b. adding to item 18 of his DD Form 214 the entry "SERVICE IN KUWAIT 19980221-19980706." __________x_____________ CHAIRPERSON I certify that herein is recorded the true and complete record of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in this case. ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20090011619 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20090011619 2 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1