RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
         AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2002-04058
            INDEX CODE:  107.00

            COUNSEL:  NONE

            HEARING DESIRED: NO

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

His discharge document (WD AGO Form 53-55) be changed to  reflect  his
Prisoner of War (POW) status; and that he received  the  Purple  Heart
Medal (PHM) as a result of being wounded during an air battle.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

He was wounded in World War II when his  plane  was  shot  down  on  a
bombing mission to Oschersleben, Germany on 11 January 1944 and he was
a POW, Stalag 17B, Krems, Austria from January 1944 to May 1945.

In support of his appeal, the applicant submits a statement from a co-
prisoner of war, a  copy  of  his  Honorable  Discharge  document  and
various Veterans Affairs documents.

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

_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant contracted his enlistment in the Army Air  Corps  on  12
October 1942.  He was progressively promoted to  the  grade  of  Staff
Sergeant.  The applicant’s personnel records  were  destroyed  in  the
1973 fire at the National Personnel Records Center (NPRC).

Applicant participated in the Air Offensive of Europe from the  period
2 November 1943 until 23 May 1945.  On 11 January 1944,  his  aircraft
was damaged by flak and the crew  was  ordered  to  bail  out  of  the
aircraft.  He was taken captive by the Germans and held as a POW until
2 May 1945.  The applicant returned to the United  States  on  23  May
1945 and was subsequently honorably discharged  on  13  November  1945
under the auspices of Army Regulation (AR) 615-365 for Convenience  of
the Government (Discharge of Surplus Enlisted Personnel.)  At the time
of his discharge he had served a total of 2 years, 1 month and 2 days.

_________________________________________________________________


AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

AFPC/DPW was able to document applicant’s claim of  being  a  POW  and
consequently recommended his discharge document reflect that he was  a
POW and he  be  considered  for  award  of  the  Purple  Heart  Medal.
AFPC/DPW’s evaluation and attached POW list is at Exhibit C.

AFPC/DPPPR addressed the issue of whether or not the applicant  should
be awarded  the  PHM  for  wounds  received.   DPPPR  notes  that  the
applicant applied for and received a POW Medal  in  1988.   They  note
also that, regarding his alleged wounds, the applicant was not able to
provide any official evidence that he received  any  wounds  in  WWII.
The applicant provided a letter from a fellow POW who stated that they
both had problems with their stomach’s and their wounds due to a  lack
of decent food and  a  lack  of  medical  attention  by  their  German
captors.  There is not, however, any mention of the  type  of  wounds,
when the wounds  were  received,  or  that  there  was  any  firsthand
knowledge of the wounds.

DPPPR notes that the applicant’s personnel records were  destroyed  by
the 1973 fire at NPRC but did acknowledge receipt of  the  applicant’s
medical records from the Veterans Administration (VA).  They note that
the applicant did not document any wounds on his  discharge  document,
nor did he include any mention  of  wounds  when  he  applied  for  VA
disability claim in 1948. On 23 April 1986 the applicant claimed  that
he received scars on his right arm and right  cheek  from  20mm  shell
fragments during an attack on his aircraft.   The  VA  denied  Service
connection for the scars as the applicant had not claimed them in  his
1948 claim nor in his discharge physical.

DPPPR recommends denial on the basis of the available  medical  record
and by the  fact  that  the  applicant  has  not  provided  sufficient
documentation or plausible explanation to verify  his  claim  for  the
award of the Purple Heart Medal.

DPPR’s complete evaluation, with attachments, is at Exhibit D.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

Copies of the Air Force evaluations were forwarded to the applicant on
21 March 2003 for review and comment within 30 days.  As of this date,
there has been no response 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.  Sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the
existence of an error or injustice.  The  majority  of  the  Board  is
persuaded by the applicant's assertions  and  his  former  commander's
notarized  statement  concerning  the  circumstances  surrounding  his
injury.  Thus, it is believable he did  sustain  wounds  as  a  direct
result of enemy fire while he was  serving  as  a  gunner  on  a  B-17
aircraft on that mission raid over Oschersleben, Germany during  World
War II.  The absence of any information  pertaining  to  the  asserted
wounds from the existing records is not surprising in view of the fact
he was taken prisoner after bailing out of his damaged  aircraft.   In
view of the foregoing and in recognition of his service to the nation,
the majority of the Board is of the opinion that any doubt  should  be
resolved in the applicant's favor.  Therefore,  the  majority  of  the
Board recommends the records be corrected as indicated below.
_________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT:

The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air Force
relating to APPLICANT be corrected to show that he was awarded the
Purple Heart for injuries he received in action against an enemy of
the United States in a B-17 aircraft during a mission over
Oschersleben, Germany, on 11 January 1944.
_________________________________________________________________

The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-
2002-04058 in Executive Session on 8 July 2003, under  the  provisions
of AFI 36-2603:

      Mr. John L. Robuck, Panel Chair
      Mr. Christopher Carey, Member
      Ms. Martha Maust, Member

By a majority vote, the Board voted to grant the request.  Ms. Maust
voted to deny the request and did not desire to submit a minority
report.  The following documentary evidence was considered:

    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 7 Aug 02, w/atchs.
    Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
    Exhibit C.  Letter, AFPC/DPW, dated 10 Feb 03, w/atchs.
    Exhibit D.  Letter, AFPC/DPPPR, dated 10 Mar 03, w/atchs.
    Exhibit E.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 21 Mar 03.




                                   JOHN L. ROBUCK
                                   Panel Chair

                         DEPARTMENT OF THE AIR FORCE
                                WASHINGTON DC




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Office Of The Assistant Secretary


BC-2002-04058




MEMORANDUM FOR THE CHIEF OF STAFF

      Having received and considered the recommendation of the Air
Force Board for Correction of Military Records and under the authority
of Section 1552, Title 10, United States Code (70A Stat 116), it is
directed that:

      The pertinent military records of the  Department  of  the  Air  Force
relating to APPLICANT, be corrected to show that he was awarded  the  Purple
Heart for injuries he received in action against  an  enemy  of  the  United
States in a B-17 aircraft during a mission over  Oschersleben,  Germany,  on
11 January 1944.






     JOE G. LINEBERGER

     Director

     Air Force Review Boards Agency