Another command sponsor letter question

Author Message   John D. Moderator Username: John_d Post Number: 4467 Registered: 06-2003 Posted From: 95.208.80.143 Posted on Friday, May 14, 2010 - 03:38 am:    Traci, That's probably true but irrelevant. What's relevant is the timeframe stated on the commander's deployment letter.   Traci Crites New member Username: Tracilin Post Number: 1 Registered: 01-2010 Posted From: 180.131.232.146 Posted on Friday, May 14, 2010 - 03:01 am:    365 days or more...Let's be real here, your husband will not get back the date he is scheduled..I have been married to my marine for 17 years and he has not once returned from a deployment early or on time and we have done plenty of deployments!!   Katherine Murray Member Username: Kmurray Post Number: 16 Registered: 01-2008 Posted From: 80.148.23.80 Posted on Friday, May 07, 2010 - 03:52 pm:    I went back to the terminal and talked to a new representative. I didn't ask for a supervisor immediately because I thought I would see what this new person said. He told me he had no idea why the other rep would have changed my CAT from III to IV, that I am a CAT III. He changed my status back in the system. So, I am not sure what happened earlier, but I am thankful it is cleared up. Thank you all again for your expertise!   dinotars Senior Member Username: Dinotars Post Number: 6662 Registered: 06-2003 Posted From: 173.169.151.24 Posted on Thursday, May 06, 2010 - 11:31 am:    Kathryn, Make sure that your chatting is with a Pax Supervisor.Let us know the results of your discussion.   Katherine Murray Member Username: Kmurray Post Number: 15 Registered: 01-2008 Posted From: 80.148.23.80 Posted on Thursday, May 06, 2010 - 06:20 am:    Thank you all so much for your responses and help. DeeDee--I realize now that I was calling the letter by the wrong name. Thank you for pointing that out to me. Cherry--the words on my actual letter are: "Space-A Dependent Verification Letter/Unaccompanied Dependents of military members deployed for more than 365 consecutive days." "Deployment Start Date: 15 AUG 2009; Deployment End Date: 15 AUG 2010" And, I agree that I should probably be ok as a CAT IV with an early sign up date. I may run back over to the terminal again this afternoon to see I might chat them up again about the issue. I will bring the print out that DeeDee graciously posted and see happens from there. Thanks again! I really do appreciate all of your comments.   John D. Moderator Username: John_d Post Number: 4408 Registered: 06-2003 Posted From: 195.145.135.149 Posted on Thursday, May 06, 2010 - 03:54 am:    DeeDee, I'm reading the dates as 00:00 on August 15, 2009 through 23:59 on August 15, 2010 but I can see how it could be read the other way. Cherry has a good point - the letter may actually say "365 days" and the Pax rep is keying off those words versus the dates.   Cherry C. Senior Member Username: Cherry Post Number: 6310 Registered: 06-2003 Posted From: 71.163.18.160 Posted on Thursday, May 06, 2010 - 01:51 am:    Katherine, you write (below) that "I have a command-sponsor letter that states that my husband is deployed for more than 365 consecutive days" but it seems that is NOT the actual language of the letter because in the next paragraph you write "The command sponsor letter states that his deployment is from August 15, 2009 through August 15, 2010..." I know this seems nit-picking but the details are all-important. Just what are the actual words on your letter? -------------------------- BTW, since you were a Cat III.5 or III.B on the trip there, you really were only at the very top of Cat IV -- that is, any other ("real") Cat III would have been ahead of you regardless of signup date. So with the mature signup date you undoubtedly have, your chances of getting a seat on the flight you want are probably exactly the same regardless of the "change" in your category. And once you get home, I hope you plan to write to your husband so he can bring this "interesting" problem to the attention of whoever creates the letters, and have them make a change in the boilerplate so no other wife will face this kind of mixup!   DeeDee Clarke Senior Member Username: Deedee Post Number: 628 Registered: 05-2004 Posted From: 67.11.180.124 Posted on Wednesday, May 05, 2010 - 11:36 pm:    I can understand why August 15, 2009 to August 15, 2010 is only considered 365 days. Say your birthday is August 15th. On August 15, 2010 you would be one year older than you were on August 15, 2009. One year is generally considered 365 days. Therefore, August 15, 2009 to August 15, 2010 would be considered 365 days. Or, noon time on August 15, 2009 to noon time August 15, 2010 would be 365 days.   dinotars Senior Member Username: Dinotars Post Number: 6657 Registered: 06-2003 Posted From: 173.169.151.24 Posted on Wednesday, May 05, 2010 - 09:19 pm:    She should take her problem to a supervisor at the terminal in question.   John R Garrison Senior Member Username: Majorg Post Number: 2577 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 208.81.157.86 Posted on Wednesday, May 05, 2010 - 09:10 pm:    JohnD: I agree. Don't know what's up with that! John   John D. Moderator Username: John_d Post Number: 4407 Registered: 06-2003 Posted From: 195.145.135.149 Posted on Wednesday, May 05, 2010 - 08:54 pm:    John, you're correct but August 15, 2009 through August 15, 2010 should be 366 days the way I count it.   John R Garrison Senior Member Username: Majorg Post Number: 2576 Registered: 02-2006 Posted From: 208.81.157.86 Posted on Wednesday, May 05, 2010 - 08:30 pm:    Katherine: You seem to have misread the info at the FAQs: "Everything I read online (from your FAQ's and elsewhere) states 365 or more days, not 366." The FAQs (actually the referred to underlying regs) clearly state Cat III for "more than 365 days" and also state "if 365 days or lessI" for Cat IV. I seems, at least from a mathematics viewpoint, that the Paxrep is correct: "more than 365 days" = "366 days or more" The minimum number that is "more than 365 days" is 366. John   John D. Moderator Username: John_d Post Number: 4404 Registered: 06-2003 Posted From: 195.145.135.149 Posted on Wednesday, May 05, 2010 - 07:13 pm:    Katherine, I can't open DeeDee's link from my current location but I'm confident it points to the official policy memo. There's also a copy linked from the Spacea.net FAQ on dependents of deployed sponsors and it's very clear that the criteria is "more than 365 days." Print out the memo, show it to the Pax Reps and ask that they verify it with HQ if they still have doubts. Knowledge is power. p.s. Don't confuse the issue by referring to your letter a s a "Command Sponsor Letter" - those are for Cat-V travel.   DeeDee Clarke Senior Member Username: Deedee Post Number: 627 Registered: 05-2004 Posted From: 67.11.180.124 Posted on Wednesday, May 05, 2010 - 06:27 pm:    The policy for cat III is deployed for more than 365 consecutive days. http://www.acq.osd.mil/log/tp/new_airlift_policies/space-avail_travel_family.pdf FYI, since your husband is not stationed OCONUS, you are not command sponsored. Instead, you have a family member of a deployed service member letter.   Katherine Murray Member Username: Kmurray Post Number: 14 Registered: 01-2008 Posted From: 80.148.23.80 Posted on Wednesday, May 05, 2010 - 06:05 pm:    My husband is currently on orders to be deployed for a little over a year (we obviously don't know EXACTLY the number of days at this point, though). I met my husband at Ramstein for his R&R. I took a Space-A flight a few weeks ago to get here. I have a command-sponsor letter that states that my husband is deployed for more than 365 consecutive days. I used this command-sponsor letter to leave from BWI a few weeks ago. Because of his length of deployment, I was a CAT III. I am now waiting to fly out of Ramstein, back to BWI, in the next couple of days. I went to the AMC desk today to check on flights and make sure all of my sign-up information was correct and I was told that my category is NOT a CAT III, but rather a CAT IV because my husband needs to be deployed for 366 days or more, not 365 or more. The command sponsor letter states that his deployment is from August 15, 2009 through August 15, 2010, which would be 366 days, would it not? Anyway, the AMC rep would not accept me as a CAT III. She changed my command-sponsor letter to read that I am a CAT IV, and she initialed the change. I explained (nicely) that I was a CAT III from BWI to Ramstein, so I didn't understand the sudden change. She said that was the rule and how it was "in the system." She seemed to understand my confusion but said there was nothing she could do because it was the rule. Does this sound right to anybody else? In the grand scheme of things, this doesn't really rank as all that important, but I am more curious than anything how this could be. Everything I read online (from your FAQ's and elsewhere) states 365 or more days, not 366.