IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 14 May 2009 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20090001643 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, in effect, that the specific dates of his Iraq service be documented on his DD Form 214 (Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty). 2. The applicant states, in effect, that Item 18 (Remarks) of his DD Form 214 does not list the exact dates of his combat service in Iraq which will result in his being denied grants. 3. The applicant provides his DD Form 214 in support of his application. CONSIDERATION OF EVIDENCE: 1. The applicant's record shows that, while serving as a member of the Massachusetts Army National Guard (MAARNG), he was ordered to active duty in support Operation Iraqi Freedom (OIF) and entered active duty on 12 June 2006. 2. The applicant's Official Military Personnel File (OMPF) contains a unit memorandum from the 1060th Transportation Company, Camp Al Taji, Iraq, dated 1 August 2007, which identifies the applicant's periods and locations of service in support of OIF. It indicates the applicant served in Kuwait from 4 through 22 September 2006, and in Iraq from 25 September 2006 through 23 August 2007. 3. On 7 December 2008, the applicant was released from active duty (REFRAD) and returned to the MAARNG after serving on active duty for 11 months and 29 days. The DD Form 214 shows he earned the Iraq Campaign Medal (ICM) with 1 bronze service star and Item 18 contains an entry indicating he was ordered to active duty in support of OIF and an entry indicating he completed the period for which he was ordered to active duty for the purpose of post service benefits and entitlements. Item 18 does not include an entry regarding locations and dates of service. 4. A review of the applicant's Defense Finance and Accounting Service (DFAS) pay record confirms he received imminent danger pay/hostile fire pay (IDP/HFP) from 4 September 2006 through 3 September 2007. 5. Army Regulation 635-5 (Separation Documents) prescribes the separation documents that must be prepared for Soldiers on retirement, discharge, release from active duty service, or control of the Active Army. It also establishes standardized policy for preparing and distributing the DD Form 214. Chapter 2 contains preparation instructions for the DD Form 214. The instructions for Item 18 state, in pertinent part, that for a Reserve Soldier ordered to active duty and deployed to a foreign country, the following three statements will be entered in succession: (1) "ORDERED TO ACTIVE DUTY IN SUPPORT OF (OPERATION NAME) PER 10 USC (applicable section)."; (2) "SERVICE IN (NAME OF COUNTRY DEPLOYED) FROM (inclusive dates for example, YYYYMMDD - YYYYMMDD)."; and (3) "SOLDIER COMPLETED PERIOD FOR WHICH ORDERED TO ACTIVE DUTY FOR PURPOSE OF POST-SERVICE BENEFITS AND ENTITLEMENTS." DISCUSSION AND CONCLUSIONS: 1. The applicant's contention that his specific dates of combat service should be documented in Item 18 of his DD Form 214 was carefully considered and found to have merit. 2. The evidence of record confirms the applicant served in Kuwait from 4 September 2006 through 22 September 2006 and in Iraq from 25 September 2006 through 23 August 2007, as evidenced by the unit statement of service memorandum on file in his OMPF. It is reasonable to presume that the applicant was in some travel status during the two-day period missing from these dates. As a result, it would be appropriate to incorporate them into his Iraq service, which is the last area he served in. Therefore, it would be appropriate to add the entries "SERVICE IN KUWAIT FROM 20060904-20060922" and "SERVICE IN IRAQ FROM 20060923-20070823" to Item 18 of his DD Form 214. BOARD VOTE: ___x____ ___x____ ___x____ GRANT FULL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF ________ ________ ________ GRANT FORMAL HEARING ________ ________ ________ DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The Board determined that the evidence presented was sufficient to warrant a recommendation for relief. As a result, the Board recommends that all Department of the Army records of the individual concerned be corrected by amending Item 18 of his DD Form 214 by adding the entries "SERVICE IN KUWAIT FROM 20060904-20060922" and "SERVICE IN IRAQ FROM 20060923-20070823"; and by providing him a correction to his DD Form 214 that includes these changes. _______ _ 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) AR20090001643 3 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1 ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20090001643 2 ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 1