RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS


IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2002-03684

            COUNSEL:  NONE

            HEARING DESIRED:  NO


_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

His records be corrected to reflect that he was  awarded  the  Purple  Heart
(PH), the Distinguished Flying Cross (DFC), and  the  Prisoner-of-War  (POW)
Medal.

_________________________________________________________________

THE APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

He is entitled to the PH based on wounds received on 13 October 1944  during
a forced bail out of an aircraft.  He is also entitled to the DFC  based  on
completion of 38 missions, including five bombing runs over the Ploesti  Oil
Fields.  Since he was captured on 23 October 1944 and held as  a  POW  until
1 December 1944, he is also entitled to the POW Medal.

In support of the appeal,  the  applicant  submits  a  copy  of  a  telegram
informing his mother that he was in a MIA  status,  and  extracts  from  his
personnel records.

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

_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant is a former Army Air Corps member who served  on  active  duty
during the period 8 February 1943 through 31 October 1945.  He served  as  a
B-24 (Liberator) aerial engineer gunner (also  waist  and  tail  positions),
with the 451st Bombardment Group, 15th Air  Force,  in  Algeria  and  Italy.
During this period, he was awarded  the  Air  Medal,  with  Three  Oak  Leaf
Clusters (AM, 3 OLC).

He was shot down over Yugoslavia on or about 13 October 1944,  and  returned
to military control on 22 October 1944.

An Evaders Form, completed by the applicant on 22  October  1944,  indicates
that partisans immediately picked him  up  upon  landing  and  that  he  had
evaded capture.

The Purple Heart (PH) is awarded for wounds received as a direct  result  of
enemy action (i.e., gunshot or shrapnel wounds, hand-to-hand combat  wounds,
or forced aircraft bail out injuries due to the aircraft being shot down).

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.

The POW Medal is  awarded  to  active  military  members  who  are  forcibly
detained or interned in the line of duty.

_________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATIONS:

AFPC/DPWCM recommends the applicant’s request for award of the POW Medal  be
denied.  AFPC/DPWCM states, in part, that the applicant  is  not  listed  on
the Army Repatriation and Family Affairs Division POW  database.   Upon  his
return on 22 October 1944, the applicant completed an Evaders  Form  (To  be
completed by those never  in  Prison  Camps)  which  states  that  partisans
picked him up immediately and that he had evaded capture.  Since  the  enemy
never captured him, he was never a POW.

The AFPC/DPWCM evaluation, with attachments, is at Exhibit C.

AFPC/DPPPR recommends the application be denied and states,  in  part,  that
although the applicant states that he was shot down on 23 October  1944  and
held as a POW, his records indicate that he was  shot  down  on  13  October
1944, declared MIA, and returned to military control  on  21  October  1944.
On 22 October 1944, he  provided  the  information  that  immediately  after
being shot down, he was picked up  by  partisans,  evading  capture  by  the
enemy.  Since the enemy never captured him, he is not eligible for  the  POW
Medal.  The applicant also claims that he is entitled to the DFC because  he
completed 38 missions; however, his DVA records  show  that  he  claimed  to
have completed only 25 missions and he has provided  no  documentation  that
he was recommended for the DFC.  Furthermore, there is no indication in  his
service medical records and DVA records that he  was  wounded  as  a  direct
result of enemy action.  Therefore, he is not  eligible  for  award  of  the
Purple Heart (PH).

The AFPC/DPPPR evaluation, with attachments, is at Exhibit D.

_________________________________________________________________


APPLICANT’S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATIONS:

Complete  copies  of  the  Air  Force  evaluations  were  forwarded  to  the
applicant on  25  April  2003  for  review  and  response  within  30  days.
However, as of this date, this office has received no response.

_________________________________________________________________

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.  After thoroughly  reviewing  the  evidence
of record and noting the applicant’s contentions, we are  not  persuaded  he
should be awarded the PH, DFC, and POW Medal.  In this respect, we note  the
following:

      a.    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,
or forced aircraft bail out injuries due to the aircraft being  shot  down).
The applicant requests award of the PH due  to  injuries  he  received  when
forced to bail out of his aircraft when the engines failed.  However,  since
forced aircraft bail injuries were  due  to  engine  failures  and  not  the
direct result of enemy action, he does not meet the criteria  for  award  of
the PH.

      b.    The applicant also contends that  he  is  entitled  to  the  DFC
because he completed 38 missions; however, we find insufficient evidence  to
substantiate he is entitled to the DFC.  In this respect, we note  that  the
applicant’s Separation Qualification Record, indicates he flew  37  missions
as an aerial engineer gunner.  Regardless, there has been  no  showing  that
the 12th Air Force had an established policy whereby  the  DFC  was  awarded
for the completion of 38 missions. While we are in no  way  questioning  the
applicant’s recollection of his aviation service, we  find  insufficient  to
warrant awarding the DFC.  Given the amount of time that has  elapsed  since
the events in question, we must consider his request for the  DFC  based  on
the evidence before us.  In this regard, we do not believe he  has  met  his
burden of proving that he should have been awarded the DFC.

      c.    Although the applicant contends that he was held as a POW  after
being shot down on 23 October 1944, the evidence of  record  indicated  that
he was shot down on 13  October  1944,  picked  up  by  partisans,  declared
Missing-in-Action (MIA), and returned  to  military  control  on  21 October
1944.  Since the enemy never captured him, he is not eligible  for  the  POW
Medal.

      d.    The personal sacrifice the applicant endured for his country  is
noted and our decision in no way diminishes the high regard we have for  his
service; however, insufficient documentary evidence has  been  presented  to
warrant  awarding  him  the  requested  decorations.   Hence,  we  find   no
compelling basis to recommend granting the relief sought.

_________________________________________________________________

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  Docket  Number  BC-2002-03684
in Executive Session on 5 June 2003, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

                       Mr. Robert S. Boyd, Panel Chair
                       Ms. Kathleen F. Graham, Member
                       Mr. James A. Wolffe, Member

The following documentary evidence was considered:

    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 20 Aug 02, w/atchs.
    Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
    Exhibit C.  Letter, AFPC/DPWCM, dated 27 Mar 03, w/atchs.
    Exhibit D.  Letter, AFPC/DPPPR, dated 16 Apr 03, w/atchs.
    Exhibit E.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 25 Apr 03.




                                   ROBERT S. BOYD
                                   Panel Chair