MEMORANDUM OF CONSIDERATION

	IN THE CASE OF:      

	BOARD DATE:            12 October 2000                  
	DOCKET NUMBER:    AR2000040036

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

	Mr. Carl W. S. Chun		Director	
	Mr. W. E. Schnupp		Analyst	

  The following members, a quorum, were present:

	Mr. John D. Miller		Chairperson	
	Mr. John E. Denning		Member	
	Ms. Carol Jo Suiter		Member	

	The Board, established pursuant to authority contained in 10 U.S.C. 1552, convened at the call of the Chairperson on the above date.  In accordance with Army Regulation 15-185, the application and the available military records pertinent to the corrective action requested were reviewed to determine whether to authorize a formal hearing, recommend that the records be corrected without a formal hearing, or to deny the application without a formal hearing if it is determined that insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of probable material error or injustice.

	The applicant requests correction of military records as stated in the application to the Board and as restated herein.

	The Board considered the following evidence:

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

APPLICANT REQUESTS:  That his WD AGO Form 53-55 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation) be corrected to show that he served in Okinawa and Korea and that he was a heavy equipment operator and a machine gunner.

APPLICANT STATES:  That his record is not a complete record of his service because his separation document does not show all of his awards or the areas in which he served.

In support of his request, he has provided a copy of his WD AGO Form 53-55 and a copy of his Honorable Discharge Certificate.

EVIDENCE OF RECORD:  The applicant's military records were lost or destroyed in the 1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center.  Information contained herein was derived from documents provided by the applicant.

He was inducted on 29 June 1944 and served in the Asiatic-Pacific Theater of Operations from December 1944 to December 1945 with the 184th Infantry, 7th Division.  His military occupational specialty (MOS) is shown as truck driver, light, and his service outside the continental U.S. (Block 36, WD AGO Form 53-55) is shown as AP (Asiatic-Pacific).  He was honorably discharged at demobilization on 22 December 1945 in the grade of technician 5th grade.

His awards include the Combat Infantryman Badge (CIB), the Philippine Liberation Medal with one bronze service star, the Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal, the Purple Heart, the Good Conduct Medal, the World War II Victory Medal, the World War II Honorable Service Lapel Button and the Marksman Badge with rifle bar.

Technical Manual 12-235, Preparation of Separation Forms, the authority then in effect, provided guidance for preparation of the WD AGO Form 53-55.  It provides in pertinent part, that the form-contained spaces for all items deemed appropriate; therefore no additional entries will be made.  Entries will adhere as closely as possible to examples presented in the manual in order to ensure uniformity of the form.

Army Regulation 600-8-22, Military Awards, provides that subsequent to the cessation of hostilities during World War II, the regulation governing the award of the Bronze Star Medal was changed, in part, to provide for the award of this 

decoration to those individuals who had been awarded the CIB for meritorious achievement in ground combat against the armed enemy between 7 December 1941 and 2 September 1945.

DA Pamphlet 672-3, Unit Citation and Campaign Participation Credit Register, shows that the 184th Infantry of the 7th Division was awarded the Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation for the period October 1944 to July 1945 and the Army of Occupation (Japan) Medal for the period from September 1945 to January 1946.

DISCUSSION:  Considering all the evidence, allegations, and information presented by the applicant, together with the evidence of record, applicable law and regulations, it is concluded:

1.  Instructions for preparing the WD AGO Form 53-33 did not provide for listing the specific overseas areas in which the soldier served. Instead, service outside the continental U.S. (Block 36) was listed as AP for the Asiatic-Pacific Theater of Operation.  Therefore, the current entry on his discharge is consistent with the instructions for preparing the form and there is no basis to change it.

2.  The applicant has provided no evidence and the available records contain no evidence to show that he was awarded MOS’s as a heavy equipment operator and machine gunner.  Without such evidence there are no grounds for this Board to change the record.

3.  In view of the foregoing, there is no basis for granting the applicant's request.  However, the available records establish that the applicant was a member of the 184th Infantry, 7th Division and by virtue of that assignment and his receipt of the CIB, he is entitled to the following awards in addition to those already shown on his WD AGO Form 53-55: the Bronze Star Medal (based on receiving the CIB), the Army of Occupation Medal (Japan) and the Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation.

DETERMINATION:  The applicant has failed to submit sufficient relevant evidence to demonstrate the existence of probable error or injustice.

NOTE:  The Army Review Boards Agency Support Division, St. Louis, Missouri will be instructed to issue the applicant the Bronze Star Medal, the Army of Occupation Medal (Japan) and the Philippine Republic Presidential Unit Citation 

and the necessary correction to his WD AGO Form 53-55 reflecting these awards.

BOARD VOTE:

________  ________  ________  GRANT

________  ________  ________  GRANT FORMAL HEARING

___jdm __  ___jed __  ____cjs      DENY APPLICATION

		    Carl W. S. Chun
		    Director, Army Board for Correction
    of Military Records

INDEX

CASE ID	AR2000040036	
SUFFIX		
RECON	YYYYMMDD	
DATE BOARDED	20001012	
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.  100.05		
2.   107.00		
3.   110.04		
4.   		
5.		
6.