IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 19 April 2011 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20100024654 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 correctly show his service in Saudi Arabia. 2. The applicant states the dates are wrong. He actually served in Saudi Arabia from 12 October 1990 to 14 April 1991. 3. The applicant provides a copy of his DA Form 2A (Personnel Qualification Record - Part I). 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 retired as a sergeant first class (SFC)/E-7 on 30 November 2004. 3. Item 18 (Remarks) of his DD Form 214 shows the entry "SERVICE IN SOUTHWEST ASIA 19910415 - 19911004, 19950215 - 19950525." 4. His DA Form 2A, section D (Overseas Service): * item D1.1 (Last ASG [Assignment]) shows the entry 19950220 19950508 Kuwait * item D1.2 (Second Previous ASG) the entry "19901012 19910414 SAUDI ARABIA" 5. His Noncommissioned Officer Evaluation (NCOER) for the period ending December 1990 notes in Part III (Duty Description ), part d (Areas of Special Interest), "Operation Desert Storm Deployment". The subsequent NCOER mentions only redeployment in this section. 6. A Gulf War data base file shows the applicant's deployments as 1 October 1990 through 31 March 1991 and 1 March 1995 through 31 May 1995. 7. Army Regulation 635-5 (Personnel Separations - Separation Documents) prescribes the separation documents prepared for Soldiers upon retirement, discharge, or release from active military service or control of the Army. It establishes standardized policy for the preparation of the DD Form 214. It states that for an active duty Soldier deployed to a foreign country with his or her unit during their continuous period of active service, the statement "SERVICE IN (NAME OF COUNTRY DEPLOYED) FROM (inclusive dates for example, YYYYMMDD - YYYYMMDD)" will be entered in block 18. DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: 1. The dates of the applicant's deployment for service in the first Gulf War are somewhat ambiguous. His DA Form 2A gives his overseas service dates as 12 October 1990 to 14 April 1991 for Saudi Arabia and 20 February 1995 to 8 May 1995 for Kuwait. 2. These dates are substantiated by the applicant's NCOERs and mostly confirmed by the Gulf War participant roster. 3. In view of the foregoing, the applicant's DD Form 214 should be corrected to coincide with the overseas service dates on his DA Form 2A. However, changing the dates he served in Kuwait from what is currently on his DD Form 214 would make him slightly worse off. He does not request correction of those dates, and therefore they will not be corrected. 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 18 of his DD Form 214 the entry "Service in Southwest Asia 19910415-19911004, 19950215 - 19950525," and b. adding to item 18 of his DD Form 214 the entry: * "Service in Saudi Arabia From 19901012 - 19910414" * "Service in Kuwait From 19950215 - 19950525'' ____________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) AR20100024654 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20100024654 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1