Can I recieve a negitive counseling for not answering my phone?

I'm going to take a different route and say that, the mere fact you are able to recognize your fault in the matter and accept your punishment like an adult, tells me you will do fairly well for yourself in the military. As you stay longer in the Army, you will see that although your Soldiers will make mistakes, the ones who can recognize their fault, learn from it, and move on, could end up being your most dependable Soldiers.

That said, accountability is a very important topic. Depending on the type of unit you are in and/or the region you are working in, cell phone contact can be crucial. For instance, if an Emergency Deployment Readiness Exercise (EDRE) happens, they need to be able to reach you quickly in order for your unit to meet its activation timeline (often within 2 hours); you will eventually hear of the term "N+2" There are often follow-on actions that occur throughout the remainder of the exercise, which require units to move quickly. For instance think of South Korea; in the event of a North Korean invasion, units being able to reach everyone quickly can make a massive difference in our ability to defend and repel attacks, while also getting civilians out of the country through Non-Combatant Evacuation Operations (NEO).

Cell phones make it to where units do not necessarily (but still can) have to hold multiple mandatory formations throughout any given day. In 2007, I was rotated back from COP Callahan to FOB Taji for a 12-hour re-fit (PX run, DFAC, MWR, quiet sleep, and such). During those 12-hours, we had to physically attend 3-4 accountability formations in our tent area, which took almost an hour to get to, because the FOB shuttles only came around every 30 minutes or so and it took 30 minutes to get to the tents. So say I am at the tents, it would take an hour to get to the DFAC, then I have to spend an hour getting back for formation. Then if I want to go to the PX, I have to spend another hour; shortly after getting there, I have to spend another hour heading back to the next formation. Then if I want to go to MWR it would take another hour. Then of course we have to get back for to prep gear and convoy brief, so that's another hour of transit. That's 6-hours out of a 12-hour refit spent just transiting to mandatory formations. The next time a re-fit came around, I waived my rotation.

So while there is no regulation specifying Army leaders can dictate the specific usage of your cell phone, it is VERY MUCH in the best interest of a Soldier's personal time to be available for instant contact, rather than having to transit for formations. While cell phone contact is unofficial, it has been accounted for in the U.S. Army's ability to respond to global threats very quickly, while maximizing Soldier down-time (except for that one 1SG that loves to hold everybody late, lol).

The Army is 24/7. This is basic Army stuff. The alternative to you being reachable is to check in with staff duty on a really short interval or providing a contact number to each location as you arrive and depart. Sound ridiculous? This was life pre-cell phone, especially if you were on any kind of stand by or alert status. my Dad did this for an entire enlistment as a SAC Ground Crew Member on three hour Nuclear alert. So it's nothing new. This is the alternative to a cell phone.

You are lucky to have an NCO that cares enough to come to your house and make sure you are safe.

Yes, specialist Jeffy you can bec counseled and even more so if the mission was important. You could of gotten yourself a shiny article 15. You even said, that it's your phone not his property. You are the governments property 24/7. Not wanting to answer the phone, becuase you think that he doesnt pay for your phone is redundant. You still have to follow orders, if you cannot be relied on, failure to adapt and then kick you out. Their are many differant ways to get kicked out is service for stupid shit. 2 a.m. in the morning you should be used too not getting any sleep. Non-Commissioned Officer for life-peace bitch.

No offense...but you joined the Army...they did not join you. You have to follow the rules that are set up according to your unit. Just to flip it...how would you handle it if you had a soldier you are responsible for that you could not get a hold of?

What was his message at 2am?