RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2014-01102 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: His DD Form 214, Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge, for the period of service 30 Sep 57 to 20 Aug 60, be corrected to add the following awards: 1. Air Force Outstanding Unit Award (AFOUA). 2. National Defense Service Medal (NDSM). 3. Armed Forces Service Medal (AFSM). 4. Air Force Overseas Ribbon (AFOR). 5. Air Force Longevity Service Award (AFLSA) (Administratively resolved). Additionally, his DD Form 214, Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge, for the period of service 1 Oct 61 to 31 Aug 62, be corrected to add the following awards: 6. Aircrew Wings. 7. Flight Engineer Wings. 8. Good Conduct Medal, with One Oak Leaf Cluster (GCM, W/1 OLC). 9. Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (AFEM). APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: His service record is missing the AFLSA, NDSM, and AFSM. His service while assigned to the 321st Bomb Wing and/or 72nd Bomb Wing, renders him eligible for the AFOUA, and he earned the AFOR for service in Puerto Rico. He further contends his record from 1 Oct 61 to 31 Aug 62 renders him eligible for Aircrew Wings, Flight Engineer Wings, a second award of the GCM, and the AFEM for service in Vietnam. The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. STATEMENT OF FACTS: The applicant’s military personnel records were apparently destroyed in the fire at the National Personnel Records Center in 1973. According to the limited records available, the applicant served in the Regular Air Force from 10 Aug 55 through 20 Aug 60 when he was discharged. On 21 Aug 60, he was transferred to the Air Force Reserve and subsequently served in the National Guard. On 1 Oct 61, the applicant was recalled to extended active duty (EAD) and served on active duty until 31 Aug 62, when he was released from EAD and returned to the National Guard where he served until he was discharged on 9 Jan 63. The GCM is awarded to enlisted members who have honorably completed three continuous years of active military service subsequent to 26 Aug 40, and who are recommended by their commanding officers for exemplary behavior, efficiency, and fidelity. This medal is only awarded to Airman prior to the establishment of the Air Force Good Conduct Medal on 1 Jun 63. In accordance with Executive Order 8809, amended by Executive Order 9323, the GCM may also be awarded to service members who complete more than one year but less than three years of active federal military service if the AFGCM has not been previously awarded. The GCM is awarded for a one-year period of service during a time of war only when a formal declaration of war has been made and approved by the United States Congress. The AFEM is awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces who, after 1 Jul 58, participated in United States Military operations, United States operations in direct support of the United Nations, or United States operations of assistance for friendly foreign nations. The AFEM may be awarded to members of the United States Armed Forces who after 1 July 1958: Participate, or have participated, as members of United States Military units in a United States Military operation in which service members of any Military Department participate, in the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, in significant numbers; encounter, incident to such participation, foreign armed opposition, or are otherwise placed, or have been placed, in such position that, in the opinion of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, hostile action by foreign armed forces was imminent even though it did not materialize. Service members must have been permanently assigned, attached, or detailed to a unit that participated in or engaged in direct support of the operation for 30 consecutive days in a designated area of eligibility in a foreign territory (or for the full period when an operation is less than 30 days duration) or for 60 non-consecutive days, provided the support involved entering the area of eligibility or met the following criteria: Was engaged in actual combat, or duty that was equally as hazardous as combat duty, during the operation with armed opposition, regardless of time in the area of eligibility, or was wounded or injured and required medical evacuation from the area or eligibility while participating in the operation, regardless of time in the area of eligibility. The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are contained in the memoranda prepared by the Air Force offices of primary responsibility (OPR), which are attached at Exhibits C, D, and E. AIR FORCE EVALUATION: ARPC/DPTS recommends denial, indicating there is no evidence of an error or an injustice supporting the applicant’s request. After a review of the applicant’s record, no DD Form 214 ending 20 Aug 60 was found. To accomplish the DD Form 214, documentation of the member's separation ending 20 Aug 60 is required. Further, there are no supporting documents that justify adding the requested awards (GCM and AFEM) to his DD Form 214 ending 31 Aug 62. A complete copy of the ARPC/DPTS evaluation is at Exhibit C AFPC/DPSID recommends denial, indicating there is no evidence of an error or an injustice with respect to the applicant’s requests for the AFOUA, NDSM, AFSM, and AFOR. There is no documentation contained in the applicant’s submission or in his very limited records to substantiate his entitlement. The AFOUA is awarded to numbered units that have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service or outstanding achievement that clearly sets the unit above and apart from similar units. However, there is no evidence he served with a unit that was awarded the AFOUA while he was assigned to the unit. The NDSM is awarded for honorable active service as a member of the United States Armed Forces for any period between 27 Jun 50 and 27 Jul 54, between 1 Jan 61 and 14 Aug 74, between 2 Aug 90 and 30 Nov 95, and from 11 Sep 01 to a future date to be determined. The applicant served on active duty from 10 Aug 55 to 20 Aug 60, which is not a period in which the NDSM is authorized. The AFSM is awarded to members of the Armed Forces who after 1 Jun 92, participate or have participated, as member of United States military units, in a military operation that is deemed to be a significant activity by the Joint Chiefs of Staff; however, the applicant separated from active duty numerous years before the authorization date of the AFSM, rendering him ineligible for the award. The AFOR is awarded to Air Force and Air Force Reserve members credited with completion of an overseas tour on or after 1 Sep 80. Only individuals serving on active duty as of 6 Jan 86 are eligible to have the AFOR applied retroactively for completion of an overseas tour. However, the applicant's service was several years before the authorization date for award of the AFOR, rendering the applicant ineligible. As for the applicant’s request for the AFLSA, his active duty service during 10 Aug 55 to 20 Aug 60 qualifies for the AFLSA but was not reflected in his record. Upon final board decision, if a DD Form 214 covering this period of service cannot be located, a copy of the advisory opinion will be placed in the applicant's official military record as verification of his entitlement to the AFLSA. A complete copy of the AFPC/DPSID evaluation is at Exhibit D. AF/A3O-IF recommends denial to award Air Force Crew Wings, indicating there is no evidence of an error or an injustice. AFM 35-13, Flying Status, Aeronautical Ratings Designations and Parachute Jump Status, states an individual who has held a crew member specialty as a principal duty assignment for not less than 36 months will be authorized to wear the badge permanently or (2) an individual who has been incapacitated for further aircrew duty as such by reason of being wounded as a result of enemy action or injured as the result of an aircraft accident while an aircrew member, or has participated in at least ten combat missions as a crew member under probable exposure to enemy fire. However, no documentation in the applicant’s record could be found to justify award of Air Force Crew Wings; and based on the information provided by him, his specialty (A43151C, Aircraft Mechanic), does not qualify for Air Force Crew Wings. A complete copy of the AF/A3O-IF evaluation is at Exhibit E. APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: The applicant refutes claims by the OPR that he lacks qualifying service for his requested awards and claims his unit personnel staff never appropriately documented his requested awards on his DD Form 214. He submits several pieces of documentation to support his request; specifically, he provides a DD Form 214, dated 20 Aug 60, as evidence of qualifying service for the AFOUA and AFOR; additionally, he believes he may be entitled to the Cold War Medal, as well. His DD Form 214, with an effective date of 31 Aug 62, is evidence of qualifying service for the NDSM (for the period between 1 Jan 61 and 14 Aug 74, as stated in the AFPC advisory). In response to the recommendation to deny award of the Aircrew Wing and Flight Engineer Wings, he submits a certificate of completion of the Flight Engineer Technician Course, 21 Dec 61, and Aircrew familiarization course (KC97 Aircraft), 27 Feb 62. Additionally, he submits a request for personnel action, dated 3 Aug 62, stating he met qualifications for the 43174 Air Force Specialty (Flight Engineer). To support evidence he qualifies for the AFEM, he submits evidence he participated in Operation “Back Porch” in Vietnam in the form of AF Form 622, Request and Authorization for Temporary Duty for Military Personnel, dated 14 Jun 62, for a duration of approximately ten (10) _days. THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing law or regulations. 2. The application was not timely filed; however, it is in the interest of justice to excuse the failure to timely file. 3. Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice warranting correction of the applicant’s records to reflect his entitlement to the AFOUA, AFSM, or AFOR. We took notice of the applicant’s complete submission, including his rebuttal response, in judging the merits of the case; however, we agree with the opinion and recommendation of the AFPC/DPSIDR and adopt their rationale as the basis for our conclusion the applicant has not been the victim of an error of injustice with respect to these awards. As for his request for the Aircrew and Flight Engineer wings, we are not convinced the applicant is the victim of an error or injustice in this regard either. While we note the applicant submitted certificates of completion for aircrew training in response to the advisory opinions, we do not find this documentation, in and of itself, sufficient to conclude that corrective action is warranted. In this respect, we note the comments of AF/A3-IOF indicating the prescribing directive requires a member to hold a crew member specialty as a principal duty assignment for at least 36 months, unless incapacitated for further aircrew duty due to enemy action or the result of an aircraft accident, or perform at least ten combat missions, in order to qualify for the aircrew badge. As for the applicant’s request to correct his DD Form 214, dated 31 Aug 62, to reflect he was awarded the GCM, we are not convinced that corrective action is warranted. In this respect, we note that the GCM was typically awarded for three years of continuous service, but could be awarded for as little as one year of active service, with a recommendation from the commander. However, in view of the fact that the period of service documented by the DD Form 214 in question was for only 11 months, we are not convinced the applicant met the criteria for the GCM during this period of service. As for the applicant’s request for the AFEM, we do not find the evidence presented by the applicant sufficient to conclude that he should have been awarded the AFEM. While he has provided a copy of a temporary duty (TDY) order to Vietnam in support of Operation Back Porch in support of this request, we do not it sufficient to recommend corrective action. In this respect, we note that the AFEM can be awarded for deployed service to a qualifying area of responsibility (AOR) of at least 30 consecutive or 60 non-consecutive days. Therefore, in view of the fact that the applicant’s TDY orders document only a ten- day period of deployed duty, we are not convinced the applicant’s records should be corrected to reflect his entitlement to the AFEM. Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find no basis to recommend granting the requested relief. 4. Notwithstanding the above, sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice in regard to the applicant’s request for award of the NDSM. We note the Air Force office of primary responsibility recommends denial of the applicant’s request for the NDSM, indicating there is no evidence of eligible service during the inclusive periods for the award; however, in view of the fact the applicant has provided a copy of his DD Form 214 substantiating that he served on active duty during the period 1 Oct 61 to 31 Aug 62, and said period falls within the qualifying period of 1 Jan 61 through 14 Aug 74 as noted by the Air Force OPR, we believe corrective action is warranted. Therefore, we recommend his record be corrected to the extent indicated below. THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT: The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air Force relating to the APPLICANT be corrected to show that the DD Form 214, Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge, dated 31 Aug 62, be corrected to reflect he was awarded the National Defense Service Medal (NDSM). The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2014-01102 in Executive Session on 25 Feb 15 under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: , Panel Chair , Member , Member The following documentary evidence pertaining to AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2014-01102 was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 13 Mar 14, w/atchs. Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. Exhibit C. Memorandum, ARPC/DPTS, dated 23 Jun 14. Exhibit D. Memorandum, AFPC/DPSIDR, dated 22 Sep 14. Exhibit E. Memorandum, AF/A3O-AIF, dated 6 Nov 14. Exhibit F. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 6 Jan 15. Exhibit G. Letter, Applicant, dated 3 Feb 15. w/ atchs.