DA DD Forms Answers

DA Form 7213 — MISSILE FIRING DATA REPORT (TOW)

What is DA Form 7213? It is the Department of the Army form titled MISSILE FIRING DATA REPORT (TOW), and it exists so that you can MISSILE FIRING DATA REPORT (TOW). That single line covers most of what people arrive looking for. The rest of this page fills in the details.

Am I looking at the right edition? The copy here carries the date 06/01/2021 and the status ACTIVE. Forms in the DA series are identified by edition date rather than by revision number, so that date is what you compare against.

Who fills it out, and how long does it take? The individual named in the entries fills it, or a records clerk fills it on that person's behalf. Length is unknown page(s) with about unknown entry fields, which is the honest measure of the work involved. Who owns the form and when it is raised comes from G-4 and PAM 700-16 respectively.

Download the form

Which formats can I download? These: PDF. All of them carry the same published page — the difference is not what the form says but how you get words onto it.

What is the difference between fillable and printable? A fillable pdf has live fields that accept typing and can be saved with your entries in place. A printable pdf is the same blank page with no live fields, meant to come out of a printer and be completed with a pen. Both print identically once filled.

Which application should I use? Reading takes nothing beyond a browser. Filling takes a proper pdf reader, since browser viewers vary in whether they retain what you type — verify with a single field and a save before you fill the whole form.

Is it free? Yes, entirely. No registration stands between you and the file, and what arrives is exactly what the publisher released.

Where do you start? At the top of the page, with the identifying entries: name as your official records spell it, identification number, unit or organisation, date of preparation. Why first? Because those entries are what the form is filed and searched under later, and a record indexed on a misspelled name is a record nobody retrieves.

How should you work through the entry fields? With the tab key. It follows the order the form was constructed in, which is usually the order the page reads, so nothing gets passed over. Do check boxes work the same way? They are clicked rather than tabbed into. In an exclusive group, a second click elsewhere clears your first choice, as intended.

What happens if your answer is too long for the field? It prints cut off. A single-line field does not wrap, so text running past the edge stays readable on screen and then disappears at the margin on paper. What do you do instead? Move it to the remarks area or onto a continuation sheet. And a field that does not apply to you? Mark it as not applicable rather than leaving it blank — an empty box tells the reviewer nothing about whether you read the question.

When do you sign? Last, after every other entry is settled. Until the signature is applied the document is a draft, however complete it looks. What if more than one signature is required? Reviewing official, approving authority and witness sign in the order the blocks print, and each dates the form on the day of signing rather than the day it was prepared. What goes wrong most often? Mandatory fields left empty, transposed digits in identification numbers, dates with day and month reversed, and old entries surviving in a working copy that was reused instead of a fresh blank form.

Why does the form carry a Privacy Act statement? Because personal information is being collected, and the statement declares the authority, the purpose, who else routinely sees the data, and whether answering is required or optional. Is it worth reading? Read it before you fill the fields it governs, not after. Does it change how you keep the file? It should — a filled copy is a personal record and gets the handling such records receive.

Where do you send it? To the destination the prescribing directive names, which may be a specific office, the unit administrative channel, or the individual's file. Is a copy worth keeping? Always, and taken before submission. How long does the receiving office keep it? For the period the records schedule for the series prescribes, regardless of local custom.

How do you find related forms? By series and number. Documents in the DA series sharing a proponent or a prescribing directive are commonly used together, and a form cited on the face of another usually goes forward with it. When should you gather them? Before submission — continuation sheets, cover sheets and transmittal documents belong in the package from the start.

When is an edition replaced? When the proponent revises the form and publishes a new edition date. What should you do with a copy kept on your own machine? Check its date against the edition in force before reusing it. Does the change reach backwards? It does not; work already completed on an earlier edition remains valid as filed.

What exactly is this site? A place to download reproductions of published Department of the Army documents. Is it part of the Department of the Army? No — it is independent, issues no forms of its own, and has no authority over any of them. Can it tell you whether your completed form will be accepted? It cannot, and nothing written here is legal advice. Who answers the real questions? G-4 or the administrative office servicing your unit, on any question of entry, requirement or eligibility.

Questions and answers

What is DA Form 7213?
MISSILE FIRING DATA REPORT (TOW)
Which edition is current?
06/01/2021
Who is responsible for this form?
G-4
In which formats can it be downloaded?
PDF

Publisher notes

  1. 41-ITEM ALSO PRODUCED IN ELECTRONIC MEDIA

Other forms in the series