B-126398, MAR. 29, 1956

B-126398, MAR. 29, 1956

TO MASTER SERGEANT RAY F. ADAMS, USMC:

YOUR LETTER OF NOVEMBER 28, 1955, REQUESTS REVIEW OF THE SETTLEMENT OF AUGUST 27, 1952, WHICH DISALLOWED YOUR CLAIM FOR $256.48, REPRESENTING THE AMOUNT COLLECTED FROM YOU AS THE COST OF TRANSPORTATION FURNISHED YOUR DEPENDENTS FROM WASHINGTON, D.C., TO SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA, AND RETURN. YOU FURNISHED ADDITIONAL INFORMATION BY LETTER OF FEBRUARY 23, 1956.

BY ORDERS DATED AUGUST 14, 1950, YOU WERE TRANSFERRED FROM HEADQUARTERS MARINE CORPS, WASHINGTON, D.C., TO MARINE CORPS AIR STATION, EL TORO (SANTA ANA), CALIFORNIA, FOR DUTY. ON AUGUST 6, 1951, YOUR DEPENDENTS WERE FURNISHED TRANSPORTATION FROM WASHINGTON, D.C., TO SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA, AND ON AUGUST 14, 1951, THEY WERE FURNISHED RETURN TRANSPORTATION. ON THE BASIS THAT THEIR TRAVEL WAS PERFORMED AFTER YOU HAD BEEN ORDERED FROM EL TORO TO DUTY OVERSEAS AND SINCE WASHINGTON, D. C., IS THE PLACE WHERE YOU WANTED THEM TO BE WHILE YOU WERE OVERSEAS, THE COST OF THEIR TRANSPORTATION WAS COLLECTED FROM YOU BY CHECK AGE. IT IS YOUR CONTENTION THAT YOU DID NOT RECEIVE NOTICE OF ORDERS TO DUTY OVERSEAS UNTIL AUGUST 8, 1951. BY THAT TIME YOUR DEPENDENTS WERE EN ROUTE FROM WASHINGTON, D. C., TO SANTA ANA, CALIFORNIA, AND COULD NOT BE INTERCEPTED. WE STATED IN THE SETTLEMENT THAT JULY 29, 1951, APPARENTLY WAS THE DATE OF RECEIPT OF VERBAL INFORMATION OF THE CHANGE OF STATION. IN YOUR LETTER OF NOVEMBER 28, 1955, YOU STATE YOU CANNOT SAY IF ANY INFORMATION RELATING TO THE CHANGE OF STATION WAS OR WAS NOT GIVEN TO THE UNIT ON JULY 29, 1951, AND THAT YOU CANNOT REMEMBER ANY TIME PRIOR TO THE RECEIPT OF A CERTIFICATE IN LIEU OF ORDERS THAT ANY SUCH INFORMATION WAS GIVEN TO THE TROOPS. IN YOUR LETTER OF FEBRUARY 23, 1956, YOU QUOTE CERTAIN PARAGRAPHS FROM THE YEAR BOOK "EQUITATUS CAELI 1951," WRITTEN AND PUBLISHED BY MEMBERS OF YOUR UNIT, HMR-161, WHICH YOU BELIEVE SUPPORT YOUR CONTENTION THAT YOU RECEIVED THE NOTIFICATION ON AUGUST 8, 1951. ACTUALLY, THE QUOTED PASSAGES DO NOT INDICATE THE DATE ON WHICH NOTIFICATION OF ORDERS WAS RECEIVED BY YOU OR OTHER MEMBERS OF THE UNIT. THEY MERELY STATE THAT THE LOADING OF THE VESSEL COMMENCED ON THE EIGHTH (AUGUST 8, 1951), AND THAT THEN, FOR THE FIRST TIME, THE SQUADRON WAS INFORMED OF THE "DATE OF EMBARKATION.'

THE RECORD SHOWS THAT THE MARINE CORPS CHECKED YOUR PAY FOR THE COST OF TRANSPORTATION ON THE BASIS OF INFORMATION AVAILABLE AT THAT TIME. IT WAS DISCLOSED THAT BY LETTER OF APRIL 16, 1952, THE COMMANDING GENERAL, AIR FLEET MARINE FORCE, PACIFIC, ADVISED THE QUARTERMASTER GENERAL THAT ON JULY 21, 1951, FLEET MARINE FORCE PACIFIC, DIRECTED THAT HMR-161 BE DEPLOYED OVERSEAS AS SOON AS PRACTICABLE AFTER AUGUST 1, 1951, AND THAT THE CERTIFICATE IN LIEU OF ORDERS ISSUED TO YOU WAS DELIVERED TO YOUR SQUADRON ON JULY 31, 1951. BY SPEED LETTER DATED APRIL 25, 1952, THE COMMANDING OFFICER, MARINE HELICOPTER TRANSPORT SQUADRON 161, ADVISED THE QUARTERMASTER GENERAL THAT THE PERSONNEL OF HMR-161 WAS INFORMED AT A SQUADRON MUSTER ON/OR ABOUT JULY 29, 1951, THAT IF THEY DESIRED A CERTIFICATE IN LIEU OF ORDERS FOR TRANSPORTATION OF DEPENDENTS SUCH CERTIFICATE WOULD BE PREPARED AT THEIR REQUEST AS THE SQUADRON WAS PREPARING TO DEPART FOR OVERSEAS; THAT ON JULY 30, 1951, A LETTER WAS SENT TO AIR FLEET MARINE FORCE PACIFIC, CONTAINING A LIST OF THE MEN WHO DESIRED SUCH A CERTIFICATE, AND THAT YOUR NAME WAS ON THAT LIST. ON JULY 30, 1951, THE COMMANDING GENERAL, AIR FLEET MARINE FORCE PACIFIC, ISSUED A CERTIFICATE IN LIEU OF ORDERS. YOUR NAME IS ON THAT CERTIFICATE. WHILE THE RECORDS DOES NOT SHOW THE EXACT DATE ON WHICH YOU RECEIVED THE CERTIFICATE, IT APPEARS REASONABLY ESTABLISHED THAT YOUR NAME WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN PLACED ON THE CERTIFICATE HAD YOU NOT REQUESTED IT. THUS, THE INFERENCE IS CLEAR THAT YOU KNEW OF THE ORDERS TO DUTY OVERSEAS ON/OR ABOUT JULY 29, 1951, OR BEFORE YOUR DEPENDENTS COMMENCED THE TRAVEL FROM WASHINGTON, D.C.

THAT CERTIFICATE IN LIEU OF ORDERS WAS ISSUED FOR THE PURPOSE OF ENABLING MEMBERS TO OBTAIN TRANSPORTATION FOR THEIR DEPENDENTS FROM THEIR STATION, OR FROM WHERE THE DEPENDENTS WERE THEN LOCATED, TO A DESIGNATED PLACE, INCIDENT TO THE MEMBER'S ASSIGNMENT TO DUTY OVERSEAS. HOWEVER, SINCE YOU DESIGNATED WASHINGTON, D.C., AS THE PLACE TO WHICH TRANSPORTATION OF DEPENDENTS WAS DESIRED, AND SINCE YOUR DEPENDENTS WERE LOCATED IN THAT CITY WHEN THE CERTIFICATE WAS ISSUED, IT IS CLEAR THAT NO TRANSPORTATION OF DEPENDENTS WAS AUTHORIZED ON THE BASIS OF THAT CERTIFICATE.

ON THE BASIS OF THAT RECORD IT REASONABLY MAY NOT BE CONCLUDED THAT YOU DID NOT HAVE KNOWLEDGE OF THE ORDERS TO OVERSEAS DUTY PRIOR TO THE TRAVEL OF YOUR DEPENDENTS FROM WASHINGTON, D. C., AND THEREFORE, THE SETTLEMENT OF AUGUST 27, 1952, WAS CORRECT, AND IS SUSTAINED.