RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        25 October 2005
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20050014020


      I certify that hereinafter is recorded the true and complete record
of the proceedings of the Army Board for Correction of Military Records in
the case of the above-named individual.

|     |Mr. Carl W. S. Chun               |     |Director             |
|     |Mr. Eric S. Moore                 |     |Analyst              |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. James E. Anderholm            |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Jose A. Martinez              |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. LaVerne M. Douglas            |     |Member               |

      The Board considered the following evidence:

      Exhibit A - Application for correction of military records.

      Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including advisory opinion,
if any).

THE APPLICANT'S REQUEST, STATEMENT, AND EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant requests that his discharge document be corrected to show
award of the Combat Infantryman Badge, World War II Victory Medal, Master
Jump-wings, and Glider Badge.

2.  The applicant states, in effect, that he earned the awards and should
be awarded them.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record
and Report of Separation and Honorable Discharge) and a copy of a memo that
makes reference to the Combat Infantryman Badge and Bronze Star.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  The applicant is requesting correction of an alleged error which
occurred on   3 August 1945, the date of his discharge from active duty.
The application submitted in this case is dated 1 December 2004.

2.  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 allows the Army
Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) to excuse failure to file
within the 3-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines that it
would be in the interest of justice to do so.  In this case, the ABCMR will
conduct a review of the merits of the case to determine if it would be in
the interest of justice to excuse the applicant’s failure to timely file.

3.  The applicant’s service personnel records were lost or destroyed in a
fire at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973.  The records
available to the Army Board for Correction of Military Records were
provided in part by the applicant and also obtained from alternate sources.
 The primary record available to this Board is the applicant’s WD AGO Form
53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation and Honorable Discharge).

4.  Due to a lack of information, the case was originally closed without
action.  However, prior to shipping of the file, additional information was
received allowing for the case to be further processed.



5.  The WD AGO Form 53-55 issued to the applicant on the date of his
discharge shows that he entered active service on 18 June 1940.  This form
also shows that the applicant was awarded the military occupational
specialty (MOS) 814 (Operations NCO), and that he was assigned to
Headquarters and Headquarters Company, 550th Infantry Airborne Battalion.
On 3 August 1945, he was honorably separated from active duty.

6.  The applicant's WD AGO 53-55 shows, in item 33 (Decorations and
Citations), that he was awarded the Purple Heart, the European-African-
Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 3 bronze stars, the American Defense
Service Medal with 1 bronze star, and the American Theater Service Medal.
Item 34 (Wounds Received in Action) shows that he was wounded in action, in
Belgium on 7 January 1945.

7.  The applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55 does not show he was recommended for
or awarded the Combat Infantrymen Badge, the World War II Victory Medal,
Master Jump-wings or the Glider Badge.

8.  The applicant's records contain a final payment worksheet.  The
document confirms that he received combat infantry pay for the period 1
December 1944 to 3 August 1945 prior to his separation from the Army.

9.  War Department Circular 269-1943 established the Combat Infantryman
Badge to recognize and provide an incentive to infantrymen.  The Combat
Infantryman Badge was awarded for exemplary conduct in action against the
enemy.  War Department Circular 186-1944 further provided that the Combat
Infantryman Badge was to be awarded only to infantrymen serving with
infantry units of brigade, regimental or smaller size.  Additionally, World
War II holders of the Combat Infantryman Badge received a monthly pay
supplement known as combat infantry pay and holders of the Expert
Infantryman Badge were entitled to expert infantry pay.  Therefore,
Soldiers had economic as well as intangible reasons to ensure that their
records were correct.  Thus, pay records are frequently the best available
source to verify entitlement to this award.

10.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides, in pertinent
part, that the Bronze Star Medal is awarded for heroism and for meritorious
achievement or service in military operations against an armed enemy.  The
Bronze Star Medal is authorized for each individual who was cited in orders
or awarded a certificate for exemplary conduct in ground combat between 7
December 1941 and 2 September 1945 or whose achievement or service, during
that period, was confirmed by documents executed prior to 1 July 1947.  An
award of the Combat Infantryman Badge or the Combat Medical Badge is
considered to be a citation in orders.  This means, in effect, that the
Bronze Star Medal is to be awarded to individuals who were authorized
either badge for service during World War II.

11.  Army Regulation 600-8-22, in pertinent part, authorizes award of a
bronze service star, based on qualifying service, for each campaign listed
in Appendix B of this regulation and states that authorized bronze service
stars will be worn on the appropriate service medal.

12.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides, in pertinent part, for award of the
World War II Victory Medal.  It is awarded for service between 7 December
1941 and 31 December 1946, both dates inclusive.

13.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 states, in pertinent part, that award of the
Glider Badge was discontinued effective 3 May 1961.  The regulation
authorizes wear of the Glider Badge if the individual met the eligibility
requirements then in effect. The regulation also provides for award of the
Glider Badge retroactively when it can be established by means of
sufficient documentation that the proficiency tests then prescribed were
satisfactorily completed while the individual was assigned or attached to
an airborne unit, or to the Airborne Department of the Infantry School, or
by participating in at least one combat glider landing into enemy-held
territory as a member of an organized force carrying out an assigned
tactical mission for which the unit was credited with an airborne assault
landing by the theater commander.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends that his records should be corrected to show
award of the Combat Infantry Badge, the World War II Victory Medal, the
Master Jump- wings, and the Glider Badge.

2.  Records show that the applicant received combat infantry pay during the
period 1 December 1944 to 3 August 1945.  Therefore, there is sufficient
evidence to show that his separation documents should be corrected to show
the Combat Infantryman Badge.

3.  Based on award of the Combat Infantryman Badge, the applicant is
entitled to award of the Bronze Star Medal.

4.  In accordance with governing regulations, the applicant is entitled to
the award of the World War II Victory Medal based on his service during
World War II from 18 June 1940 to 3 August 1945.

5.  There are no orders in the applicant's service records, which show that
he was awarded the Glider Badge, and the applicant has not provided any
evidence to show that he is entitled to award of the Glider Badge.

6.  There are no orders in the applicant's service personnel records, which
show that he was awarded Master Jumpwings, and the applicant has not
provided any evidence to show that he is entitled to Master Jumpwings.

7.  Records show the applicant should have discovered the error or
injustice now under consideration on 3 August 1945, the date of his
separation from active duty.  However, the ABCMR was not established until
2 January 1947.  Therefore, the time for the applicant to file a request
for correction of any error or injustice expired on 1 January 1950.
However, the applicant did not file within the 3-year statute of
limitations and has not provided a compelling explanation or evidence to
show that it would be in the interest of justice to excuse the failure to
timely file.

8.  The evidence shows that the applicant's record contains administrative
errors that do not require action by the Board.  The necessary correction
will be accomplished administratively by the Case Management Support
Division (CMSD), St. Louis, Missouri, as outlined in paragraph 2 of the
Board Determination/Recommendation section below.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___lmd __  ___jem__  ___jam__  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined that the evidence presented does not demonstrate
the existence of a probable error or injustice.  Therefore, the Board
determined that the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis
for correction of the records of the individual concerned to show the
Glider Badge and the Master Jump-wings.

2.  The Board determined that administrative error in the records of the
individual should be corrected.  Therefore, the Board requests that the
CMSD-St. Louis administratively correct the records of the individual
concerned to show that, in addition to the awards already listed on his WD
AGO Form 53-55, he was awarded the Combat Infantryman Badge, the Bronze
Star Medal, and the World War II Victory Medal.




                            ____James E. Anderholm______
                                      CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20050014020                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |                                        |
|DATE BOARDED            |2005/10/25                              |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |                                        |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |                                        |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |DENY with Notes                         |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |Mr. Chun                                |
|ISSUES         1.       |107.0014                                |
|2.                      |107.0111                                |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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