38 year old E-4?
38 YO E-4 = Looser
“38 year old E-4?”
I made E-4 at age 19, and E-5 at 20.
Immigrant who arrived in US in his late 20s or 30s and joined the Navy?
Yeah, a little odd. I made Master Chief at 38. You can enlist as late as 35, and waivers are available for up to 39.
I'd put money on it that he never earned E-4 as much as they gave it to him just prior to the 10-year mark to avoid throwing him out of the service due to High Year Tenure. I saw more than one retirement of an E-4 who had a clean record and never lost even one stripe.
The maximum age for first time enlistment in the Navy with no prior service is 34.