Ar 600 8 11: Fill & Download for Free

Most likely a person deployed to Afghanistan for nine months would be entitled to the Afghanistan Campaign Service Medal and the NATO Non-Article 5 Medal for Operation Resolute Support. In the 11 December 2006 revision of AR 600-8-22 (Military Awards), the Army eliminated the policy which had restricted the awarding of the Overseas Service Ribbon when another campaign or service medal is awarded. I would recommend you ask your Personnel Services Detachment or the S-1 (Adjutant) of your unit.

I see that Master Sergeant (MSG) Joshua Wheeler is shown as an example of a Special Operations Forces (SOF) soldier who has received the Air Medal. He was a member of the 1st Special Forces Operational Detachment-Delta (1st SFOD-D). They are better known to the general public as Delta Force.You are correct, the Air Medal is not awarded to individuals “who use air transportation solely for moving from point to point in a combat zone”. For instance, during Operation Iraqi Freedom if I was transported via Blackhawk from Baghdad International Airport to the Green Zone I, of course, would not be awarded an Air Medal. I would have been simply hitching a ride.Being a Delta operator, I’m certain that MSG Wheeler utilized air transportation as part of combat missions. Perhaps he manned a weapon aboard an aircraft and had to engage the enemy as part of those missions. If he inserted via military aircraft during a combat mission and played a vital role to the success of the mission once on the ground, he may have been awarded the Air Medal for his actions against the enemy. I tried to find the citation for his Air Medal but was unable to do so. Not surprising given his status as a Delta operator.As shown in the photo accompanying the question, the ribbon for Wheeler’s Air Medal is the second one down from the top of the right hand side of his ribbons.Awards of the Air Medal to Army personnel are governed by AR 600-8-22. Regarding the Air Medal, the regulation states in part:… it may also be awarded to certain other individuals whose combat duties require regular and frequent flying in other than a passenger status…Examples of personnel whose combat duties require them to fly include those in the attack elements of units involved in air-land assaults against an armed enemy and those directly involved in airborne command and control of combat operations.To be awarded the medal, an evident contribution to the operational land combat mission, or to the mission of the aircraft in flight, must have been made. My supposition would be that Wheeler’s meritorious actions while on the ground earned him the medal.By the time the 5th Special Forces Group left Southeast Asia in 1971, soldiers in that unit were awarded 4,891 Air Medals. As you can see, it is not at all unusual for a member of SOF to be awarded an Air Medal.While researching this answer, I uncovered some interesting information about the man that we mostly know as the stone faced Delta operator who was the first American soldier killed by ISIS.I saw this photo, and it immediately humanized him to me. It shows him as a real person, not just the stone faced trained killer that appears with all stories associated with his death. If you are not familiar with the story, MSG Wheeler was killed in action on October 22nd of 2015 at the age of 39 while as a member of a team conducting a hostage rescue mission in Iraq. You can read a short biographical sketch on MSG Wheeler put out by US Army Special Operations Command here: http://www.soc.mil/Memorial%20Wall/Bios/wheeler_joshua.pdfWheeler was eulogized on the floor of the Senate by Senator Inhofe, senior member of the Senate Armed Services Committee. You can read his remarks from the congressional record here if you would like: https://www.congress.gov/crec/2015/11/16/modified/CREC-2015-11-16-pt1-PgS7961-3.htmWheeler joined the Army as an Infantryman right out of High School in 1995. He was killed during his 14th deployment to Iraq or Afghanistan. That’s right, fourteen. I find that number to be pretty impressive. He had been a member of Delta since 2004.Joshua Wheeler wasn’t only a soldier, he was a husband, father of four (one of whom was an infant at the time of his death) and a proud member of the Cherokee Nation. He and his wife had recently purchased their dream home by a lake in the Fort Bragg area, and he was thinking of retiring from the Army to devote more time to his family. His wife Ashley says he was thinking of going into real estate or perhaps becoming a history teacher.** Here he is with his newborn son in 2015, shortly before his death in IraqFollowing his final leave home for the birth of his son, Ashley is quoted as saying:"He loved the Army, But I really felt this time he didn't want to leave home. It was the first time I felt that."MSG Wheeler was killed with just 11 days remaining on his final tour. May he rest in peace.PS: If you’ve enjoyed reading this piece, you might also be interested in checking out what I wrote about the fate of Army aviators during the battle of Mogadishu (Black Hawk down) In Operation Gothic Serpent, what happened to the crew members of Super 64?

According to AR 600–8–19, Enlisted Promotions and Reductions, you can be promoted to Staff Sergeant in the secondary zone.Table 3–1“To SGT—Secondary zone: 17 months TIS, 5 months TIGPrimary zone: 35 months TIS, 11 months TIGMandatory list integration: 47 months TIS, 23 months TIGTo SSG—Secondary zone: 47 months TIS, 6 months TIGPrimary zone: 71 months TIS, 17 months TIGMandatory list integration: 83 months TIS, 23 months TIG”[1]Footnotes[1] Army Publishing Directorate