RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS


IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  02-00517
            INDEX CODE:137.00

      APPLICANT (DECEASED)   COUNSEL:  None

      SSN   HEARING DESIRED:  NO

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

Her late-husband’s records be corrected to entitle her  to  a  Retired
Serviceman's Family Protection Plan (RSFPP) annuity.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

She should be awarded the annuity based on the fact that the  premiums
were paid with the understanding that she would receive the annuity.

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

_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The relevant facts pertaining to this application, extracted from  the
deceased member’s  military  records,  are  contained  in  the  letter
prepared by the appropriate  office  of  the  Air  Force  attached  at
Exhibit B.

_________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

AFPC/DPPTR states Public Law (PL) 87-381 established RSFPP and it  was
in effect when the servicemember retired; it did not allow for  spouse
coverage to be transferred to another person upon the death or divorce
of  the  original  beneficiary,   however,   the   law   allowed   the
servicemember to stop the RSFPP premium  payments  in  the  event  the
beneficiary lost eligibility.

The Survivor Benefit Plan (SBP) was established by PL 92-425 on 21 Sep
72, authorizing a 12-month enrollment period, which was later extended
to 18-months, for retired servicemembers  to  elect  coverage.   Three
additional open enrollments were authorized by PLs 97-35 (1 Oct 81 -30
Sep 82), 101-89 (1 Apr 92 - 31 Mar 93), and 105-261 (1 Mar 99 - 29 Feb
00).   Each  servicemember  was  notified  by  direct  mail   of   the
opportunity to enroll during the open  enrollment  periods,  also  the
Afterburner, USAF News for Retired Personnel, published  during  these
timeframes was forwarded to the servicemember's address maintained  by
the finance center.  The Afterburner contained points of  contacts  to
obtain additional information regarding SBP.  There were no provisions
in the law at that time to notify spouses if the servicemember did not
elect coverage.

The microfiche records at the Air Force Accounting and Finance  Center
(AFAFC)  from  December  1978  (the  oldest  retired  pay  records  in
existence) shows that  prior  to  the  servicemember's  retirement  he
elected  spouse  and  child  RSFPP  coverage  (with  option  4).   The
servicemember was divorced, and DPPTR was unable to verify his divorce
date.  There is no evidence in the servicemember's records to show  he
informed AFAFC of his change in marital status or requested the  RSFPP
premiums be terminated.  The Defense Enrollment Eligibility  Reporting
System (DEERS) records reflect the servicemember married the applicant
on 15 Sep 72.  There is no evidence that the servicemember elected SBP
during any of the authorized open enrollments.

DPPTR recommended that the request be denied.  However, if  the  Board
recommends granting the  request,  the  decedent’s  record  should  be
corrected to show the servicemember elected SBP spouse  only  coverage
based on full retired pay effective 21 Sep 72.

A complete copy of the evaluation is at Exhibit B.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

A complete copy of the Air  Force  evaluation  was  forwarded  to  the
applicant on 26 Apr 02, for review and response.  As of this date,  no
response has been received by this office.

_________________________________________________________________

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  error  or  injustice.   We  took  notice  of   the
applicant’s complete submission in judging the  merits  of  the  case;
however, we agree with the opinion and the recommendation of  the  Air
Force and adopt their rationale as the basis for our  conclusion  that
the applicant has not been the victim of an error or injustice.  While
it is a fact that the service member was enrolled  in  RFSPP,  he  was
apparently divorced from his first spouse, for whom this coverage  was
elected; and secondly, RFSPP is not transferable from one  beneficiary
to another.  Further, the service member had four opportunities during
authorized open enrollments to elect SBP coverage for  the  applicant,
but failed to do so.  The applicant has failed to sustain  the  burden
of proof that she was the victim of an  error  or  injustice.   It  is
possible that the service member  believed  that  since  he  continued
paying  RFSPP  premiums  the  applicant  would  be  paid  an  annuity.
However, we can find no proof of the service member's divorce  or  his
marriage to the applicant.  Therefore, if  the  applicant  provides  a
valid marriage certificate and proof of the service member's  divorce,
the Board would be willing to  review  her  application  for  possible
reconsideration.   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 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 AFBCMR Docket Number 02-
00517 in Executive Session on 16 August 2002, under the provisions  of
AFI 36-2603:

                       Mr. Roscoe Hinton, Jr., Acting Panel Chair
                       Mr. Joseph A. Roj, Member
                       Mr. Roscoe Hinton, Jr., Member

The following documentary evidence was considered:

      Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 28 Jan 02, w/atchs.
      Exhibit B. Letter, HQ AFPC/DPPTR, dated 17 Apr 02.
      Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 26 Apr 02.




                             ROSCOE HINTON, JR.
                             Acting Panel Chair