RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS


      IN THE CASE OF:


      BOARD DATE:        3 OCTOBER 2006
      DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20060002413


      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             |
|     |Ms. Deborah L. Brantley           |     |Senior Analyst       |

      The following members, a quorum, were present:

|     |Mr. Kenneth Wright                |     |Chairperson          |
|     |Mr. Thomas Ray                    |     |Member               |
|     |Ms. Sherry Stone                  |     |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 award of the Purple Heart.

2.  The applicant states on 26 March 1968 he was involved in direct aerial
support of combat operations and was taking a load of troops and supplies
to a fire base in Vietnam.  He states he lost an engine on his aircraft and
the helicopter crash landed upside down and he sustained injuries to his
right forearm and left knee.

3.  The applicant provides an extract from his service medical records, the
results of an investigation, and a statement from a fellow officer in
support of his request.

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  Records available to the Board indicate the applicant served 9 years as
an enlisted Soldier prior to being appointed as a warrant officer in 1958.
He then served continuously until 30 September 1969 when he retired for
length of service.

2.  The applicant commenced his second tour of duty in Vietnam on 4 June
1967 where he was assigned to the 196th Aviation Company.

3.  According to medical and investigative documents, provided by the
applicant in support of his request, he was involved in an aircraft
accident on 26 March 1968.  The document notes the applicant's aircraft
engine failed on take off from a pinnacle with a sling load.  The aircraft
settled on load and rolled down a hill.

4.  The medical treatment record, provided by the applicant, confirms that
he was seen by medical personnel on 27 March 1968.  That document also
notes the applicant was involved in an aircraft accident.

5.  The statement submitted from a fellow officer confirms details
associated with the aircraft accident.  In none of the document is there
any indication there was any enemy action involved in the crash.  The
applicant's name is not among a list of individuals reported as combat
casualties during the Vietnam War.

6.  The applicant departed Vietnam in May 1968.



7.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 provides that the Purple Heart is awarded for
wounds sustained as a result of hostile action.  Substantiating evidence
must be provided to verify that the wound was the result of hostile action,
the wound must have required treatment by a medical officer, and the
medical treatment must have been made a matter of official record.  Wounds
or injuries not incurred as a direct result of action with enemy forces,
including those incurred accidentally, do not meet the qualification
requirements for award of the Purple Heart.

8.  A review of Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-3 (Unit Citation and
Campaign Participation Credit Register) notes the applicant’s unit was
awarded the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm Unit Citation
during his tenure with the organization.  The unit award was omitted from
his separation document.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The evidence does confirm the applicant was injured while in Vietnam.
However, all the evidence, including the information contained in the
applicant's statement of support, shows the injury resulted from an
aircraft accident.  Wounds or injuries, not the direct result of action
with enemy forces, in spite of the fact that they may have been incurred
during a period of war, or in a combat theater, do not meet requirements
for award of the Purple Heart.

2.  In order to justify correction of a military record the applicant must
show, or it must otherwise satisfactorily appear, that the record is in
error or unjust.  The applicant has failed to submit evidence that would
satisfy that requirement.

3.  Evidence shows that the applicant’s records contain administrative
error which does not require action by the Board.  Therefore,
administrative correction of the applicant’s records will be accomplished
by the Case Management Support Division (CMSD), St. Louis, Missouri, as
outlined by the Board in paragraph 2 of the BOARD
DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION section below.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___KW __  __TR ___  ___SS __  DENY APPLICATION
BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  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.

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 entitlement to the Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross
with Palm Unit Citation.




                                  _____Kenneth Wright________
                                            CHAIRPERSON



                                    INDEX

|CASE ID                 |AR20060002413                           |
|SUFFIX                  |                                        |
|RECON                   |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DATE BOARDED            |20061003                                |
|TYPE OF DISCHARGE       |(HD, GD, UOTHC, UD, BCD, DD, UNCHAR)    |
|DATE OF DISCHARGE       |YYYYMMDD                                |
|DISCHARGE AUTHORITY     |AR . . . . .                            |
|DISCHARGE REASON        |                                        |
|BOARD DECISION          |DENY                                    |
|REVIEW AUTHORITY        |                                        |
|ISSUES         1.       |107.00                                  |
|2.                      |                                        |
|3.                      |                                        |
|4.                      |                                        |
|5.                      |                                        |
|6.                      |                                        |


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