RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS


IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER: 01-01253
            INDEX CODE 107.00
            COUNSEL:  NONE

            HEARING DESIRED:  NO


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APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

He be awarded the Purple Heart  (PH)  and  the  Distinguished  Flying  Cross
(DFC).

_________________________________________________________________

THE APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

He should receive the PH for a wound he received in  Bonn,  Germany,  during
World War II when the building he was in was hit by either  mortar  or  88mm
shells from German soldiers.  At the time, he felt something  hit  his  back
and there was blood on his shirt.  He was told he could be written-up for  a
PH; however, since it was not bad he  said  to  forget  about  it.   Several
years ago he had a back x-ray which revealed a piece of lead in his back.

He should be awarded the DFC because he was the only  B-26  pilot  to  shoot
down an ME-109.  In this regard, he states that  on  2 March  1945,  as  the
lead ship of a three-ship  “window”  flight  dispensing  anti-radar  “chaff”
approximately 500 feet below and in front of a 33-ship  group  formation,  a
German ME-109 began firing at a flight of six B-26s.  He  immediately  began
firing his aircraft’s four fixed package guns at  the  ME-109,  striking  it
and causing it to stream black smoke.  He continued to fire  at  the  ME-109
through the black smoke and did not stop until he  ran  out  of  ammunition.
One of their P-38s followed the ME-109 down and confirmed  its  destruction.
When he returned to base, he was told that all four of  the  aircraft’s  gun
barrels had burned out as a result of the  continuous  firing,  rather  than
the required two second bursts to help the barrels cool.   His  attitude  at
the time was that it was war and he was just doing his job; however, he  now
desires the recognition he deserves.

The applicant states that if he can show that he  was  awarded  the  PH  and
DFC, he will be eligible for property  tax  incentives  offered  to  certain
veterans by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts.

In support of the appeal, applicant submits statements from his  former  co-
pilot and  other  squadron  members,  and  an  article  from  a  bomb  group
association bulletin.

Applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A.

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STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant is a former Army Air Corps member that served on  active  duty
from 12 March 1944 to 20 October 1945 as a B-26G “Marauder”  pilot  assigned
to the 586th Bomb Squadron, 394th  Bombardment  Group,  9th  Bomb  Division.
During this period he completed a total of 39 combat missions  totaling  200
combat hours in the Ardennes, Rhineland and  Central  European  theatres  of
operation, to include the Battle of the Bulge, and  was  awarded  seven  Air
Medals.

The PH is awarded for wounds received as a direct  result  of  enemy  action
(i.e., gunshot  or  shrapnel  wounds,  hand-to-hand  combat  wounds,  forced
aircraft bail out injuries, etc.) that required  or  received  treatment  by
medical personnel.

The DFC was established by Congress  on  2 July  1926  and  is  awarded  for
heroism or extraordinary achievement while participating in  aerial  flight.
The performance of the act of heroism must be evidenced by voluntary  action
above and beyond the call of duty.

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AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

AFPC/DPPPR recommends the  application  be  denied.  AFPC/DPPPR  states,  in
part, that there is no evidence in the  applicant’s  military  records  that
supports that he was injured as a direct result  of  enemy  action.   On  27
August 2001, AFPC/DPPPR provided the applicant the  criteria  for  award  of
the PH and DFC and requested  that  he  provide  additional  information  to
substantiate his claim.  The applicant did not respond to their request.

The AFPC/DPPPR evaluation, with attachment, is at Exhibit C.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT’S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

A complete copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to  the  applicant
on 2 November 2001 for review and response within 30 days.  However,  as  of
this date, no response has been received by this office.

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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 probable error or injustice.  After a thorough  review  of  the
evidence of record and applicant’s submission, we  are  not  persuaded  that
relief should be granted.  While we acknowledge  the  applicant’s  statement
concerning his destruction of an ME-109, we find no  evidence  that  he  was
ever recommended for the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC)  for  this  event.
Furthermore, we find insufficient evidence to indicate  that  he  meets  the
criteria for award of the Purple Heart (PH).   The  personal  sacrifice  the
applicant endured for his country is noted and our  decision  should  in  no
way diminish the high regard we have for his service; however,  insufficient
documentary evidence has been presented to warrant awarding him the DFC  and
the Purple Heart.  Therefore, in the absence of evidence  to  the  contrary,
we find no compelling basis to recommend granting the relief sought in  this
application.

_________________________________________________________________

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 6 December 2001, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

                  Mr. John L. Robuck, Panel Chair
                  Mr. Laurence Groner, Member
                  Mr. Philip Sheuerman, Member








The following documentary evidence was considered:

    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 30 Apr 01, w/atchs.
    Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
    Exhibit C.  Letter, AFPC/DPPPR, dated 29 Oct 01, w/atch.
    Exhibit D.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 2 Nov 01.




                                   JOHN L. ROBUCK
                                   Panel Chair