IN THE CASE OF:	  

		BOARD DATE:	  27 November 2012

		DOCKET NUMBER:  AR20120008250 


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 records to show award of the French Fourragere and all other authorized awards.

2.  The applicant states that he was assigned to Company F, 327th Glider Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division during World War II and his unit was awarded the French Fourragere.  He wrote to the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC) in St. Louis, Missouri, requesting his awards and they were issued to him.  However, since the French Fourragere was not recorded on his discharge document and his records are not available, the NPRC was unable to verify his entitlement to the French Fourragere.

3.  The applicant provides a copy of his discharge document, the NPRC letter, and five pages of World War II unit narratives and organizational structures that include both the 101st Airborne Division and 327th Glider Infantry Regiment.

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's military service records are not available to the Board for review.  A fire destroyed approximately 18 million service members' records at the NPRC in 1973.  It is believed the applicant's records were lost or destroyed in that fire.  However, there were sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case.

3.  The applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation - Honorable Discharge) shows he was inducted on 30 November 1942, he entered active service in the Army of the United States on 7 December 1942, and he was honorably discharged on 11 October 1945.  He had completed 9 months and 3 days of continental service; 2 years, 1 month, and 2 days of foreign service; and 2 years, 10 months, and 12 days of total service for pay.  It also shows in:

   a.  item 3 (Grade):  Private First Class;

   b.  item 6 (Organization):  Company F, 327th Glider Infantry;

   c.  item 30 (Military Occupational Specialty and Number):  Light Mortar Crewman 607;

   d.  item 31 (Military Qualification and Date):
   
* Marksman Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar (M-1)
* Combat Infantryman Badge

   e.  item 32 (Battles and Campaigns):

* Ardennes-Alsace
* Central Europe
* Normandy
* Rhineland

   f.  item 33 (Decorations and Citations):
   
* Bronze Star Medal (Headquarters, 101st Airborne Division, General Orders Number 162, dated 15 July 1945)
* European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with bronze arrowhead
   g.  item 36 (Service Outside Continental U.S. and Return):

* departed the U.S. on 5 September 1943
* arrived in the European Theater of Operations (ETO) on 15 September 1943
* departed the ETO on 26 September 1945
* arrived in the U.S. on 6 October 1945

   h.  item 55 (Remarks):  (in part) Lapel Button issued

4.  Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-1 (Unit Citation and Campaign Participation Credit Register), dated 6 July 1961, lists the unit awards received by units and campaign participation of units serving in World War II.  This document shows that the 327th Glider Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division:

   a.  participated in the following campaigns:

* Ardennes-Alsace
* Central Europe
* Normandy
* Rhineland

   b.  was cited for award of the Presidential Unit Citation (formerly known as the Distinguished Unit Citation) for actions from 18-27 December 1944 by War Department General Orders (WD GO) Number 17 (1945);

   c.  received credit for combat assault landings at:

* Normandy, 6-7 June 1944, by WD GO Number 116 (1946)
* Nijmegen-Arnhem, 17 September 1944, by WD GO Number 70 (1945)

   d.  was awarded by Department of the Army General Orders (DAGO) Number 43 (1950) the:

* French Croix de Guerre for actions 6-8 June 1944
* Netherlands Orange Lanyard for actions from 17 September to 28 November 1944
* Belgian Fourragere for actions on 6 June 1944 and 22-27 December 1944

   e.  was awarded occupation credit for Germany from 2 May through 31 October 1945.

5.  A DA Form 1577 (Authorization for Issuance of Awards), dated 6 October 1989, shows the Adjutant General, Army Reserve Personnel Center, St. Louis, Missouri, authorized the issuance of awards and certificates to the applicant.

   a.  He was issued the following medals:

* Bronze Star Medal with 1 bronze oak leaf cluster
* Good Conduct Medal
* Presidential Unit Citation
* European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 4 bronze service stars and one bronze arrowhead
* World War II Victory Medal
* Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp
* Combat Infantryman Badge
* Belgian Fourragere
* Netherlands Orange Lanyard
* Honorable Service Lapel Button – World War II
* Marksman Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar

   b.  The adjutant general noted:

* "The Oak Leaf Cluster to the Bronze Star Medal is based on the award of the Combat Infantryman Badge"
* "The French Croix de Guerre as an organizational award does not entitle individual members to the decoration or any other device"

6.  In support of his application, the applicant provides the following documents:

   a.  a copy of an NPRC letter to the applicant's congressman, dated 9 April 2012, that shows the Director for Military Records authorized shipment of the following awards to the applicant:

* Bronze Star Medal with 1 bronze oak leaf cluster
* Presidential Unit Citation
* European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with 4 bronze service stars and one bronze arrowhead
* World War II Victory Medal
* Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp
* Combat Infantryman Badge
* Belgian Fourragere
* Netherlands Orange Lanyard
* Honorable Service Lapel Button – World War II
* Marksman Marksmanship Qualification Badge with Rifle Bar
* Glider Badge

   b.  The director noted:

* "The veteran is entitled to the oak leaf cluster to the Bronze Star Medal based on the award of the Combat Infantryman Badge"
* "The veteran's unit was awarded the French Croix de Guerre; however, individual members are not entitled to a decoration or any other device"
* "We were unable to verify entitlement to the French Fourragere"

7.  A review of the applicant's available records and Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-1 failed to show that his unit was awarded the French Fourragere.

8.  A review of the applicant's available records failed to show a DD Form 215 (Correction of DD Form 214) was issued to correct his discharge document to show all of his authorized awards.

9.  War Department Technical Manual 12-235 (Enlisted Personnel - Discharge and Release from Active Duty), dated January 1945, provides uniform procedures in discharging or releasing personnel from active duty.  The instructions for completing the WD AGO Form 53-55 state that the form is completed from the Service Record, Soldier's Qualification Card, Immunization Register, and information ascertained by interview with the dischargee. 

10.  Army Regulation 600-8-22 (Military Awards) provides policy, criteria, and administrative instructions concerning military awards and decorations.

	a.  The French Fourragere is an approved foreign unit award.  The French Fourragere may be awarded by the French Government when a unit has been cited twice for award of the French Croix de Guerre.  When a unit is cited twice for the Croix de Guerre, the colors of the fourragere are red and green.  When a unit is cited four times, the colors of the fourragere are yellow and green.  Award of the fourragere is not automatic and requires a decree by the French Government.  Persons who were only in one cited action are not authorized to wear the fourragere.  When a unit was cited only one time for award of the French Croix de Guerre there was no individual device, medal, or ribbon authorized for wear by members of the unit.

	b.  In a 28 March 1983 letter, the U.S. Army Military Personnel Center published the policy regarding awards of the French Croix de Guerre to U.S. Army veterans who had served in World War I and World War II.  This guidance states there is no individual emblem presented to or worn by Army Soldiers who were in a unit cited by the French Government for the Croix de Guerre.  Thus, former members of any American units which appear in Department of the Army Pamphlet 672-1 are not authorized an individual device.  This is also true of the Belgian Citation in the Order of the Day and the Netherlands Military Order of William.  As a result, the only European foreign unit awards which a former Army service member may wear are the French Fourragere, the Belgian Fourragere, and the Netherlands Orange Lanyard.  

	c.  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.  Therefore, the Bronze Star Medal is to be awarded to individuals who were authorized either badge for service during World War II.  An oak leaf cluster is awarded to denote the second and each succeeding award of certain decorations, among which is the Bronze Star Medal.

	d.  Effective 3 May 1961, the Glider Badge is no longer awarded.  An individual who was awarded the badge upon satisfying then-current eligibility requirements may continue to wear the badge.  Further, it may be awarded retroactively upon application to the U.S. Army Human Resources Command when it can be established that the proficiency tests then prescribed were satisfactorily completed while assigned or attached to an airborne unit or to the Airborne Department of the Infantry School or by participation 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.

	e.  The "arrowhead" is worn on the appropriate service medal to denote participation in a combat parachute jump, helicopter assault landing, combat glider landing, or amphibious assault landing while assigned or attached as a member of an organized force carrying out an assigned tactical mission.  Individual assault credit is tied directly to the combat assault credit decision for the unit to which the Soldier is assigned.  The unit must be credited with a combat assault in order for the Soldier to receive credit for a combat assault and the Soldier must physically exit the aircraft or the watercraft as appropriate.  The arrowhead is authorized for wear on the European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal.  Only one arrowhead will be worn on any ribbon.

11.  Army Regulation 600-68 (Good Conduct Medal), in effect at the time, stated the Army Good Conduct Medal was awarded for each 3 years of continuous enlisted active Federal military service completed on or after 27 August 1940 and, after 7 December 1941, completed 1 year of continuous active Federal military service while the United States was at war.  The award would not be made to an enlisted Soldier whose records, during the required period of service, disclosed a conviction by any court-martial, or to one whose character or efficiency was rated below "excellent."

DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS:

1.  The applicant contends that his records should be corrected to show award of the French Fourragere and all of his authorized awards.

2.  Records show that the applicant was assigned to the 327th Glider Infantry Regiment, 101st Airborne Division, and he served in the ETO from 15 September 1943 through 26 September 1945.

3.  The evidence of record shows general orders awarded the applicant's unit the Presidential Unit Citation, French Croix de Guerre, Belgian Fourragere, and Netherlands Orange Lanyard.

	a.  There is no evidence of record that shows the applicant's unit was cited twice by the French Government for the Croix de Guerre or that his unit was awarded the French Fourragere.  Therefore, the applicant is not entitled to correction of his records to show the French Fourragere.

	b.  The applicant is advised that there is no individual emblem presented to or worn by former Soldiers who were in a unit cited once by the French Government for the Croix de Guerre.  However, the evidence of record shows that this unit citation is authorized to be entered in item 55 of the WD AGO Form 53-55.

4.  The applicant served a qualifying period of active duty enlisted service for the first award of the Army Good Conduct Medal from 7 December 1942 to 11 October 1945.

5.  The applicant was authorized and issued the following additional awards:

* Bronze Star Medal with one bronze oak leaf cluster
* Good Conduct Medal
* European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with four bronze service stars and one bronze arrowhead


* World War II Victory Medal
* Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp
* Glider Badge

6.  In view of the foregoing, it would be appropriate to correct the applicant's WD AGO Form 53-55 to show his awards and decorations, as recommended below.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT FULL RELIEF 

____X____  ___X_____  ___X_____  GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF 

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION:

1.  The Board determined the evidence presented is sufficient to warrant a recommendation for partial relief.  As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by:

	a.  issuing orders awarding the applicant the Army Good Conduct Medal (1st Award) for the period 7 December 1942 to 11 October 1945 (Standard Name Line:  PFC  327th Glider Infantry, 101st Airborne Division, European Theater of Operations); and

	b.  correcting his 11 October 1945  WD AGO Form 53-55 by deleting the award entries in item 33 and adding the:

* Bronze Star Medal with one oak leaf cluster
* Army Good Conduct Medal (1st Award)
* European-African-Middle Eastern Campaign Medal with four bronze service stars and one bronze arrowhead
* World War II Victory Medal
* Army of Occupation Medal with Germany Clasp
* Presidential Unit Citation
* Belgian Fourragere
* Netherlands Orange Lanyard
* Glider Badge

	c.  adding to item 55 of his 11 October 1945 WD AGO Form 53-55:  "FRENCH CROIX DE GUERRE – UNIT CITATION – NO EMBLEM AUTHORIZED"

2.  The Board further determined the evidence presented is insufficient to warrant a portion of the requested relief.  As a result, the Board recommends denial of so much of the application that pertains to French Fourragere.  



      _____________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)                                         AR20120008250



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ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont)                                         AR20120008250



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