IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	  12 JUNE 2012

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20110023931 


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 reconsideration of his earlier request for correction of his records to show he completed 2 months and 29 days of foreign service in Vietnam vice 1 month and 27 days.

2.  The applicant states he was transferred from the 2nd Infantry to the 11th Air Assault in July 1965.  The 11th Air Assault changed to the 1st Cavalry Division.  He and others were sent over to Vietnam as an advance party to set up the 1st Cavalry Division.  They travelled by bus from Fort Benning, GA, and flew out of Mobile, AL, by military aircraft (C-130) to Travis Air Force Base, to Hawaii, to Wake Island, to Okinawa, and on to Nha Trang, Vietnam.  They arrived at Nha Trang on 19 August 1965.  A few days later they flew to An Khe, Vietnam, by helicopter.

3.  The applicant provides:

* letter from the U.S. Army Administration Center, St. Louis, MO (previously submitted)
* DD Form 1108 (Application for Replacement of Separation Document) (previously submitted)
* mailing envelope (previously submitted)
* DD Forms 2349 (Military Pay Voucher) for 1-30 June 1965 and 1-31 July 1965
* DA Form 2139 (Military Pay Voucher) for the period 1-19 November 1965
* DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge)

CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE:

1.  Incorporated herein by reference are military records which were summarized in the previous consideration of the applicant's case by the Army Board for Correction of Military Records (ABCMR) in Docket Number AR20070014698 on 10 April 2008.

2.  The applicant submits three pay vouchers from 1965 which were not previously reviewed by the ABCMR.  Therefore, they are new evidence and as such warrant consideration by the Board.

3.  The applicant was inducted into the Army of the United States on 19 November 1963.  He completed basic combat and advanced individual training at Fort Leonard Wood, MO, and he was awarded military occupational specialty (MOS) 12B (Combat Engineer) in or around March 1964.

4.  His records contain a DA Form 24 (Service Record) that shows various units of assignment between 19 November 1963 and 16 September 1965 in section 2 (Chronological Record of Military Service), including the entries:

* 17 August 1965 to 16 September 1965 – en route to U.S. Army Pacific (USARPAC)
* 17 September 1965 to 1 November 1965 – Company C, 8th Engineer Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, Vietnam

5.  His records also contain a DA Form 20 (Enlisted Qualification Record) which replaced the DA Form 24.  This form shows in:

* item 31 (Foreign Service) – he served in Vietnam from 17 September 1965 to 30 October 1965 – a hand-written entry is placed under the "30 October 1965" date and reads "15 November 1965 [illegible word] California
* item 38 (Record of Assignments) – subsequent to completing MOS training, he was assigned as follows:

* 30 March 1964 – Company A, 2nd Engineer Battalion, Fort Benning, GA
* 28 June 1965 – Company C, 127th Engineer Battalion, 11th Air Assault Division
* 1 July 1965 – Company C, 8th Engineer Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division
* 17 September 1965 – Company C, 8th Engineer Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, Vietnam
* 16 November 1965 – casual duty status
6.  There are no permanent change of station (PCS) orders, temporary duty (TDY) orders, or any other official documents in his service record that show he was ordered to or served in Vietnam.

7.  He was honorably released from active duty on 19 November 1965.  His DD Form 214 shows he completed 2 years and 1 day of total active service.  This form also shows in:

* item 24c (Foreign and/or Sea Service) – he completed 1 month and 29 days in USARPAC
* item 26 (Decorations, Medals, Badges, Commendations, Citations, and Campaign Ribbons Awarded or Authorized) – Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (Vietnam) and Expert Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar (M-14)

8.  He submits the following documents:

* DA Form 2349 for the period 1-30 June 1965 that shows he was assigned to Company A, 2nd Engineer Battalion
* DA Form 2349 for the period 1-31 July 1965 that shows he was assigned to the 1st Cavalry Division
* DA Form 2139 for the period 1-19 November 1965 that shows he received hazardous fire pay [this entry appears to have been hand-written at a different date]

9.  Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents) establishes the standardized policy for preparing and distributing the DD Form 214.  Chapter 2 in effect at the time contained guidance on the preparation of the DD Form 214 and stated that item 24c would show the total active duty outside the continental limits of the United States for the period covered by the DD Form 214 and the last overseas theater in which service was performed, e.g., U.S. Army Europe (USAREUR), USARPAC, etc.

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The exact dates of the applicant's service in Vietnam are unknown.  His record does not contain PCS or TDY orders directing his travel to and return from Vietnam.  However, the available evidence shows he served in Vietnam with Company C, 8th Engineer Battalion, 1st Cavalry Division, from on or about 17 September 1965 to on or about 16 November 1965, a period of 1 month and 29 days.

2.  Based on the available evidence, he completed 1 month and 29 days of foreign service in Vietnam.  In the absence of evidence to the contrary, it must be presumed that his DD Form 214 is accurate with respect to this foreign service and there is no reason to change it.

BOARD VOTE:

____x___  ____x___  ____x___  GRANT FULL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  Notwithstanding the staff DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS above, the Board believed that the postcard provided by the applicant with his original application (which showed he was in Okinawa on 19 August 1965) was sufficient evidence to corroborate his contention that he had about an additional month of foreign service than is currently recorded on his DD Form 214.

		1965 11 15
	    -1965 08 19
	   =           2 26
	   +                1 day inclusive
	                 2  27

2.  As a result, the Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant an amendment of the decision of the ABCMR set forth in Docket Number 20070014698 on 10 April 2008 and item 24c of his DD Form 214 should be amended to show he served 2 months and 27 days of foreign service in USARPAC.  




      ____________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)                                         AR20110023931



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20110023931



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