PROCEEDINGS

	IN THE CASE OF:  

	BOARD DATE:                              
	DOCKET NUMBER:   AC9898748

	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. Loren G. Harrell		Director	
	M .		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. 		Chairperson	
	Mr. 		Member	
	Mr. 		Member	

	The applicant and counsel if any, did not appear before the Board.

	The Board considered the following evidence:

	Exhibit A - Application for correction of military 
                records
	Exhibit B - Military Personnel Records (including
	            advisory opinion, if any)

FINDINGS:

1.  The applicant has exhausted or the Board has waived the requirement for exhaustion of all administrative remedies afforded by existing law or regulations.

2.  The applicant requests that all his service be credited as Regular Army and he be granted an active duty retirement.  His decision not to continue active military service was based on impending overseas duty and the care of his four minor children who were in his custody after his divorce.  Due to his rank and his military occupational specialty (MOS) at the time of his discharge, his only option to continue his military service was as an Individual Mobilization Augmentee (IMA).  Due to downsizing, two of the three IMA positions to which he was assigned were eliminated, making it virtually impossible to complete projects for “points only” and resulting in lost training time during reassignment.  He volunteered for numerous active duty positions from Desert Storm to Bosnia but because of his rank and substantial active service, he was turned down.  He was involuntarily transferred to the Retired Reserve but because he had not completed seven qualifying years in a reserve component, he was not eligible to apply for retired pay.

3.  The applicant’s military records show entered the Delayed Entry Program on 6 September 1967.  He enlisted in the Regular Army on 22 September 1967.  He was honorably released to the U.S. Army Reserve on 26 June 1969.  He reenlisted on 20 January 1970 and was honorably separated on 13 May 1987, in pay grade E-8, after completing 19 years and 19 days creditable active service, under the Fiscal Year 1987 Early Transition Program, Reduction in Authorized Strength.  He immediately enlisted in the U.S. Army Reserve.

4.  On 16 November 1997, the U.S. Army Reserve Personnel Center (ARPERCEN) sent the applicant a notice that, because his expiration term of service (ETS) was coming up and due to the substantial number of years of service he had, he had to option of electing transfer to the Retired Reserve or discharge.  He elected transfer to the Retired Reserve and on 21 January 1998 he was so transferred.

5.  Army Regulation 635-200 sets forth the basic authority for the separation of enlisted personnel.  Paragraph 16-8 provided that soldiers may be discharged prior to their ETS when budgetary or authorization limitation required a reduction in the enlisted strength.  Soldiers who were within two years of qualifying for retirement on the scheduled separation date would not be processed per this paragraph unless such action was directed by the Secretary of the Army.  

6.  Chapter 12 of that regulation sets the policies and procedures for voluntary retirement of soldiers because of length of service.  In pertinent part, it states that a soldier having 19 years and 6 months or more of active federal service (AFS) when notified of permanent change of station (PCS) may request a retirement in lieu of PCS.

CONCLUSIONS:  

1.  The applicant states that he had been alerted for an overseas PCS while he had custody of four minor children from his divorce.  At the time he had less than 19 years and 6 months of AFS so he was not eligible to apply for retirement in lieu of PCS.

2.  The applicant took advantage of the Fiscal Year 1987 Early Transition Program to be separated in lieu of PCS.  He had 19 years and 19 days at the time.  (Although the regulation states that a soldier within two years of qualifying for retirement would not be processed per paragraph 16-8 without Secretary of the Army approval, since the applicant claims it was his decision not to remain on active duty, it is presumed such approval was given.)

3.  It is reasonable to presume that had the applicant not been on overseas orders, or had he not had custody of four minor children when he came down on orders, he would have chosen to remain on active duty to completed 20 or more years of AFS and so earn an active duty retirement.

4.  The applicant proved his intention of not giving up on earning a military retirement by immediately entering the U. S. Army Reserve.  However, because of his grade, MOS, and substantial amount of AFS he already had, positions that offered him active duty time were limited.  ARPC Form 249-2-E shows he was able to accumulate active duty time in only six of the ten years he was in the Reserve until his involuntary transfer to the Retired Reserve (for an additional     2 months and 22 days).  The U.S. Army Reserve was also affected by downsizing, which hampered his ability to earn retirement points.  He was unable to accumulate the necessary points to make him eligible for Reserve retired pay.

5.  In view of the foregoing, it would be in the interest of justice to correct the applicant’s records 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 given an honorable discharge from the Army on 28 August 1981, under the provisions of Chapter    5-3, Army Regulation 635-200, Secretarial Authority, for the convenience of the government; that her separation code is JFF and her reentry code is RE-1.

2.  That the individual concerned be issued an Honorable Discharge Certificate from the Army of the United States, dated 28 August 1981, denoting an honorable discharge in lieu of the general discharge now held by her.

3.  That the individual concerned be issued a new DD Form 214 reflecting the aforementioned corrections.

BOARD VOTE:

                       GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

                       GRANT FORMAL HEARING

                       DENY APPLICATION

                                                                             
					 	CHAIRPERSON
2.  The applicant requests 

3.  The applicant states 

4.  The applicant’s military records show that

5.  

CONCLUSIONS:

1.

2.

3.

4.  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 

2.  That so much of the application as is in excess of the foregoing be denied 

BOARD VOTE:  

________  ________  ________  GRANT AS STATED IN RECOMMENDATION

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

________  ________  ________  DENY APPLICATION

		______________________
		        CHAIRPERSON