ARMY BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS IN THE CASE OF: BOARD DATE: 1 October 2019 DOCKET NUMBER: AR20170017255 APPLICANT REQUESTS: correction of his WD AGO Form 53-33 (Enlisted Record and Report of Separation-Honorable Service) to show in: * Item 24 (Date of Entry Into Active Service) – 4 January 1946 instead of 4 January 1947 * Item 36 (Service Outside Continental U.S. and Return) – Date of Arrival – 30 June 1946 instead of 30 June 1947 * Item 37 (Total Length of Service) – Foreign Service – 10 months and 3 days of foreign service credit instead of 10 months and 1 day APPLICANT'S SUPPORTING DOCUMENTS CONSIDERED BY THE BOARD: * DD Form 149 (Application for Correction of Military Record) * WD AGO Form 53-55 * Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) letter FACTS: 1. The applicant did not file within the three year time frame provided in Title 10, United States Code (USC), section 1552 (b); however, the Army Board for Correction of Military Records conducted a substantive review of this case and determined it is in the interest of justice to excuse the applicant's failure to timely file. 2. The applicant states: a. His date of entry should be 4 January 1946. His report of separation reflects the year “1947.” The report further indicates he arrived in the Asian Pacific Theater (APT) of Operations on 30 June 1947 and subsequently retuned to the U.S. on 7 May 1947 or before he left to the APT. He was activated on 4 January 1946, deployed on 30 June 1946, returned to the U.S. on 7 May 1947, and was subsequently discharged on 20 June 1947. He served a total of 10 months and 3 days in the APT from 13 June 1946 to 16 April 1947. b. Corrections are required to his date of entry into active service, date of arrival to the APT, and the total days of foreign service. He is unaware of how the Longevity For Pay Purposes is calculated. These are multiple errors that require the Board’s attention. He has been denied aid and attendance benefits from the VA, which is imposing a hardship. He is 90 years of age and requires this benefit. 3. The applicant provides copies of his WD AGO Form 53-55 and a letter, dated 10 March 2017, wherein the VA advised him of the denial of his claim for pension benefits as his service records showed he served from 3 January to 4 June 1947. 4. The applicant’s military records are not available to the Board for review. A fire destroyed approximately 18 million service members’ records at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973. It is believed that his records were lost or destroyed in that fire. However, there were sufficient documents remaining in a reconstructed record and documentation provided by the applicant for the Board to conduct a fair and impartial review of this case. a. His WD AGO Form 53-55 shows he enlisted in the Regular Army on 4 January 1946. The forms also shows in: * Item 7 (Date of Separation) – 30 June 1947 * Item 25 (Date of Enlistment) – he entered active service on 4 January 1947 * item 36 – he: * departed the U.S. on 13 June 1946 * arrived in the APT on 30 June 1947 * departed the APT on 16 April 1947 * arrived in the U.S. on 7 May 1947 * Item 37 – he completed: * 6 months and 21 days of continental service * 10 months and 1 days of foreign service * Item 43 (Remarks) – he had 24 days of time lost b. He served in the APT form 30 June 1946 to 16 April 1947, a period of 9 months and 17 days. He served outside the Continental U.S. from 13 June 1946 to 7 May 1947, a period of 10 months and 24 days. 5. By War Department Technical Manual 12-235 (Enlisted Personnel – Discharge and Release from Active Duty) dated January 1945, in effect at the time, the instructions for completing the WD AGO Form 53-55 and WD AGO Form 100 stated: * Item 24 would list the date of entry on current tour of active duty * Item 36 would list the date of departure, destination, and date of arrival for each movement between theaters and between a theater and the U.S. * Item 37 would list all continental and foreign service in current tour of active duty * Item 43 would list all service which could be counted for longevity pay BOARD DISCUSSION: After reviewing the application and all supporting documents, the Board found relief was not warranted. Based upon the documentary evidence provided by the applicant and available for review from the service record, the Board found that one of his burned records clearly show he entered active duty in 1947, not in 1946. However, the remainder of the requested relief cannot be verified because the Board determined there was insufficient evidence to show that there was an error or injustice which would warrant making a change to the applicant’s record. BOARD VOTE: Mbr 1 Mbr 2 Mbr 3 : : : GRANT FULL RELIEF : : : GRANT PARTIAL RELIEF : : : GRANT FORMAL HEARING X X X DENY APPLICATION BOARD DETERMINATION/RECOMMENDATION: The evidence presented does not demonstrate the existence of a probable error or injustice. Therefore, the Board determined the overall merits of this case are insufficient as a basis for correction of the records of the individual concerned. 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. REFERENCES: 1. Title 10, USC, section 1552(b), provides that applications for correction of military records must be filed within three 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 three-year statute of limitations if the ABCMR determines it would be in the interest of justice to do so. 2. War Department Technical Manual 12-235 (Enlisted Personnel – Discharge and Release from Active Duty) dated January 1945, in effect at the time, provided uniform procedures for discharging or releasing personnel from active duty. The instructions for completing the WD AGO Form 53-55 and WD AGO Form 100 stated: * Item 36 would list the date of departure, destination, and date of arrival for each movement between theaters and between a theater and the U.S. * Item 37 would list all continental and foreign service in current tour of active duty * Item 43 would list all service which could be counted for longevity pay //NOTHING FOLLOWS// ABCMR Record of Proceedings (cont) AR20170017255 4 1