RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  99-00229
                             INDEX CODE: 112.01

                             COUNSEL:  None

                             HEARING DESIRED:  No



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APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

His Home of Record (HOR) be changed from Guntersville,  AL  to  West  Jordan
(Salt Lake City), Utah.

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APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

Due to his father’s search for adequate employment during the  time  of  his
enlistment, they had been traveling in a thirty-foot Pace Arrow  Motor  Home
which was parked at a campground at  a  lake  in  Guntersville,  AL.   Their
belongings  were  stored  at  a  friends  house  in  Riverton,  UT  and  his
belongings are still there.  He never had any  of  his  original  belongings
moved when he joined the Air Force.  He had planned to  enlist  in  the  Air
Force for many  years  and  had  recently  graduated  from  high  school  in
Columbia, SC and again had to move to another state.  During that year,  and
for the four years prior, they had taken up a  nearly  Nomadic  life  moving
from place to place so that  his  father  could  gain  full-time  employment
equivalent to that he had in Utah before his  layoff  from  a  major  merged
company.  His father needed to find an equivalent job so that he  could  pay
the medical  bills  that  they  encountered  due  to  his  sister’s  serious
asthmatic  condition.   He  (applicant)  had  temporarily  stayed   in   the
following states during their move: Idaho,  Utah,  Arizona,  South  Carolina
and Alabama.  He studied part  of  his  high  school  years  attending  high
school in his home state of Utah as well as in  Idaho  and  South  Carolina,
where he graduated.  Had he known the importance and meaning  of  a  correct
HOR and had he known that this was where the military  would  move  himself,
his family and their belongings back to, he would not  have  enlisted  there
unless it could be annotated that his correct HOR was Utah and  not  Alabama
nor Tennessee where he went through  Military  Entrance  Processing  Station
(MEPS).  If this could not have been done, he would have continued  to  save
some money for another week or two and then flown back to Utah and  enlisted
there.  After serving his country well with an
excellent record for the past nine years, he and his family  planned  to  be
discharged honorably from active duty and join  the  ranks  of  the  reserve
forces in the state of Utah or California where their  families  reside  and
where he has the best opportunity for employment in his field.

In support of the appeal,  applicant  submits  a  list  of  Utah  addresses,
Personnel Security Questionnaire, Birth  Certificate,  and  Certificates  of
Training.

Applicant's complete submission is attached at Exhibit A.

_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant is currently serving in the Regular Air Force in the grade  of
staff sergeant.

Applicant enlisted in the Regular Air Force on 11 May 1990, in the grade  of
airman first class for a period of 4 years.

Applicant’s HOR is PO Box 91, Chalakee Rd, Guntersville,  AL  and  place  of
enlistment is Nashville MEPS, Nashville, TN.

On 19 May 1999, the applicant was released from active  duty  and  honorably
discharged in the grade of  staff  sergeant  with  a  narrative  reason  for
separation Completion of Required Active Service.  Applicant served 9  years
and 9 days.

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AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

The Chief, Skills Management Branch, Dir of Personnel  Programs  Management,
AFPC/DPPAE, reviewed this application and states that HOR is defined as  the
place recorded as the home of the individual  when  commissioned,  enlisted,
or ordered into the relevant tour of active duty.  It  is  recorded  in  the
military  personnel   record   for   the   sole   purpose   of   determining
transportation entitlements upon separation, or those of dependents  in  the
event of a member’s death while on active duty.  While legal  addresses  may
change from time to time during a member’s  career,  HOR  remains  constant.
HOR can be changed only if there has been a break in  service  of  one  full
day or a bona fide error was made in recording information given by  member.
 The HOR must be the actual home of the member upon  entering  the  service,
and not a different place selected for the member’s convenience.   Based  on
the evidence provided, they recommend denial of applicant's request.

A complete copy of the evaluation is attached at Exhibit C.

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APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

The applicant reviewed the advisory opinion  and  states  he  believes  upon
review  of  his  application,  the  Board  will  be  aware  of  the   unique
circumstances he  was  involved  with  at  the  time  of  his  long  awaited
enlistment.  It was neither the choice of  his  or  his  parents  for  their
temporary stay in a Pace Arrow Motor Home in the state  of  Alabama  at  the
time of his enlistment.  His recruiter was aware of the  fact  that  he  and
his family were residents of Utah at the time of  his  enlistment  and  that
they were temporarily parked in the state of  Alabama  at  that  time.   The
recruiter did not inform him of  future  problems  relating  to  his  having
enlisted in Alabama.  Had he known that there  would  be  problems  of  this
nature, he would have saved for airline tickets back to Utah and would  have
enlisted from there.  As soon as he became aware of his  incorrect  HOR  and
its horrible effects, he proceeded with this request even after  being  told
that official changes of this nature were nearly  impossible.   Non-approval
of his request would put him and his family, who has  also  served  the  Air
Force well, in jeopardy of finding a job at his duty station until they  can
afford to proceed on their own to the West.

Applicant's complete response, with attachments, is attached at Exhibit E.

_________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:

1.    The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing  law  or
regulations.

2.    The application was timely filed.

3.    Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to  demonstrate  the
existence of probable error or injustice.  After reviewing  the  applicant’s
complete submission in judging the  merits  of  the  case,  we  are  of  the
opinion that  the  applicant  has  not  been  the  victim  of  an  error  or
injustice.  The Air Force states that the Home of Record  (HOR)  is  defined
as the place recorded as the  home  of  the  individual  when  commissioned,
enlisted, or ordered into the relevant tour of active duty.   The  HOR  must
be  the  actual  home  of  the  member  upon  entering  the  service.    The
applicant’s record reflects his HOR as Guntersville, AL and the Board is  of
the opinion that his record is  accurate.   Therefore,  in  the  absence  of
evidence to the contrary, we find no compelling basis to recommend  granting
the relief sought in this application.

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THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT:

The applicant be notified that the evidence presented  did  not  demonstrate
the existence of probable material error or injustice; that the  application
was denied without a personal appearance;  and  that  the  application  will
only be reconsidered  upon  the  submission  of  newly  discovered  relevant
evidence not considered with this application.

_________________________________________________________________

The following members of the Board considered this application in  Executive
Session on 26 May 1999, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

      Mr. Thomas S. Markiewicz, Panel Chair
      Mr. Jackson A. Hauslein, Member
      Mr. Charles E. Bennett, Member
      Ms. Gloria J. Williams, Examiner (without vote)

The following documentary evidence was considered:

      Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 22 Jan 99, w/atchs.
      Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
      Exhibit C. Letter, AFPC/DPPAE, dated 26 Feb 99.
      Exhibit D. Letter, AFBCMR, dated 15 Mar 99.
      Exhibit E. Applicant’s Response, dated 5 Apr 99, w/atchs.






                             THOMAS S. MARKIEWICZ
                             Panel Chair