| Mr. Carl W. S. Chun | Director | |
| Ms. Deborah L. Brantley | Senior Analyst |
| Mr. Samuel A. Crumpler | Chairperson | |
| Mr. Melvin H. Meyer | Member | |
| Ms. Regan K. Smith | Member |
2. The applicant requests that his military records be corrected to reflect award of three Army Achievement Medals, the National Defense Service Medal, a Driver and Mechanic Badge, and the 25 Mile Manchu Road March Award. He notes the awards were omitted from his separation document. In support of his request he submits copies of his three Army Achievement Medal certificates and a copy of a memorandum awarding him the "Manchu belt buckle."
3. Records available to the Board indicate the applicant served on active duty between 30 July 1996 and 29 July 1999. He was trained as a Bradley Fighting Vehicle System Mechanic and performed those duties in Korea and at Fort Riley, Kansas.
4. While in Korea the applicant was awarded two Army Achievement Medals. The awards were confirmed in permanent orders, which are annotated on the bottom of his award certificates. Those awards, however, were omitted from his 1999 DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty). According to the memorandum, submitted by the applicant in support of his application, he was "awarded the Manchu belt buckle" for successfully completing the "25 Mile Manchu Road March" in May 1997 while a member of the 2nd Battalion, 9th Infantry Regiment.
5. The Manchu belt buckle was a distinctive uniform insignia authorized for members of the 9th Infantry Regiment in 1926. The approved buckle was a full
2 1/2 inches high and included a cam on the back for fastening the buckle to the belts. These buckles were worn by members of the 9th Regiment from 1926 through the early part of World War II. By 1954 the belt buckle was eliminated and replaced by a "miniature buckle" worn on a uniform shoulder loop and became known as a "DI" (distinctive insignia). Ultimately the distinctive unit insignia was eliminated and the buckle worn by members of the 9th Infantry Regiment today is considered an "award buckle." Soldiers of the 9th Infantry Regiment must earn the right to wear the buckle. To earn this right a member must complete the "Manchu Mile," an overnight 25-mile tactical march, with full gear and weapon. This "Manchu Mile" commemorates the 85-mile march the 9th Infantry Regiment completed in early July 1900, from Taku Bar to Tientsin for their assault on Tientsin on July 13, 1900. Those soldiers who complete this march receive and are authorized to wear the Manchu buckle while a member of the 9th Infantry Regiment.
6. Army Regulation 635-5, which establishes the policies and provisions for the preparation and distribution of the DD Form 214, states that item 13 on the separation document will reflect awards and decorations in the priority sequence specified in Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Awards and Decorations). The Manchu belt buckle is a distinctive unit device, not unlike the maroon beret worn by members of the 82nd Airborne Division, and not among the awards and decorations specified in that regulation.
7. In May 1999, while assigned to Fort Riley, Kansas, he was awarded his third Army Achievement Medal. The award was confirmed in a permanent order annotated on the award certificate. This award, however, was also omitted from the applicant's separation document.
8. Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, that the Driver and Mechanic Badge is awarded to drivers, mechanics, and special equipment operators to denote the attainment of a high degree of skill in the operation and maintenance of motor vehicles. For mechanics, a soldier must pass aptitude tests and complete the standard mechanics' course with a "skilled" rating or have demonstrated possession of sufficient previous experience as an automotive or engineer equipment mechanic to justify such a rating, and be assigned to primary duty as an automotive or engineer mechanic, unit level or higher, or as an active automotive or engineer mechanic instructor. If assigned to drive an Army motor vehicle in connection with automotive mechanic, or automotive mechanic instructor duties, the individual must qualify for a motor vehicle operators permit, perform duties which include driving motor vehicles for a minimum of six consecutive months, and have no Army motor vehicle accidents or traffic violations. Commanders authorized to make the award announce permanent award of the Driver and Mechanic Badge in permanent orders.
9. Army Regulation 600-8-22 also states, that the National Defense Service Medal is awarded for honorable active service during the following periods,
27 June 1950 through 27 July 1954, 1 January 1961 through 14 August 1974,
2 August 1990 through 30 November1995, and 11 September 2001 to a date to be determined.
CONCLUSIONS:
1. The evidence confirms that the applicant was awarded three awards of the Army Achievement Medal and his separation document should be corrected accordingly.
2. The applicant's Manchu belt buckle is a distinctive unit device, not listed in Army Regulation 600-8-22, and as such is not recorded on the separation document.
3. The applicant did not serve on active duty during a period for which the National Defense Service Medal was awarded and as such, there is no basis to add that decoration to his separation document.
4. There is no evidence, nor has the applicant provided any, that he was ever awarded the Driver and Mechanic Badge. There is insufficient evidence in available records for the Board to award the badge.
5. In view of the foregoing, the applicant’s records should be corrected as recommended below.
RECOMMENDATION:
1. That all of the Department of the Army records related to this case be corrected by showing that the individual concerned was awarded three awards of the Army Achievement Medal.
2. That so much of the application as is in excess of the foregoing be denied.
BOARD VOTE:
__SAC__ __MHM__ __RKS__ GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION
________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING
________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION
___Samuel A. Crumpler____
CHAIRPERSON
| CASE ID | AR2001066251 |
| SUFFIX | |
| RECON | YYYYMMDD |
| DATE BOARDED | 20020801 |
| TYPE OF DISCHARGE | (HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR) |
| DATE OF DISCHARGE | YYYYMMDD |
| DISCHARGE AUTHORITY | AR . . . . . |
| DISCHARGE REASON | |
| BOARD DECISION | GRANT |
| REVIEW AUTHORITY | |
| ISSUES 1. | 107.00 |
| 2. | |
| 3. | |
| 4. | |
| 5. | |
| 6. |
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