"I was questioning the IRS link I provided in my third post and other IRS info I read."

You mean, this part: "They state to not include income and write at the top of the 1040 "Combat Zone Pay"."

It doesn't state "pay." It states simply: Combat Zone.

It's not related to the Pay being tax free. It's related to the exclusion provision, in this case, specific treatment. You took heart at the wrong exclusion for this taxpayer, even if they met the presence test.

It's important to leave the info corrected, for others who might get this topic in search results.