RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS


IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2003-00899
            INDEX CODE:  107.00

            COUNSEL:  NONE

            HEARING DESIRED:  NO


_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

He be awarded the Purple Heart Medal.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

His military personnel records are incomplete.  There is  no  indication  of
an aircraft  accident  and  his  being  held  prisoner  of  war  (POW).   He
indicates that an allied aircraft hit his aircraft.  The aircraft  that  hit
him and his crew exploded and no crewmember survived.  His plane  was  still
able to fly and they attempted to continue but  it  too  exploded  after  80
miles of flight.  He was  thrown  out  of  the  plane,  injuring  his  knee,
hitting his head and was knocked unconscious.  He  was  found  by  a  German
soldier and taken to Frankfurt and then Barth, Germany and held prisoner  at
a German POW camp.

In support of his appeal,  the  applicant  provided  a  personal  statement,
Prisoner of War List, and other documentation.

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

_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant enlisted in the Army Air  Corps  on  18  March  1942  and  was
honorably discharged as an aviation cadet on 10 March 1943.

On 11 March 1943 he was appointed and  commissioned  in  the  United  States
Army Air Corps Reserve as a Second Lieutenant.

On 3 November 1943, the applicant was reported as Missing in  Action  (MIA).
On 26 November 1943, his status was changed to Prisoner of War  (POW).   The
applicant’s father was notified  on  25 May  1945  that  the  applicant  was
returned to military control on 1 May 1945 when Paris was liberated.

On 9 January 1946, he was  tendered  and  accepted  an  appointment  in  the
Officers’ Reserve Corps (ORC), Army of the United States.

The applicant’s WD AGO Form 63 Report  of  Physical  Examination,  dated  10
January 1946 reflects the following medical history:  On 3 October  1945  he
was hospitalized to repair varicosele;  Phlebitis  -  left  leg;  and  Bells
Palsy.

On 19 April 1946, the applicant was honorably discharged  in  the  grade  of
captain under the provisions of RR  1-5  Convenience  of  the  Government  -
Demobilization.  He served a total of three  years,  one  month,  and  eight
days total active service.

On 20 April 1946, the applicant was appointed in the Air Force  Reserves  in
the grade of captain.

On 1 August 1963 the applicant was assigned to the Retired Reserve,  in  the
grade of major under the provisions of AFM 35-7B.  He  completed  served  20
years of honorable service.

According to the applicant’s WD AGO Form 53-98  he  received  the  following
decorations and citations: European-African-Middle  Eastern  Theater  Ribbon
with Two Oak Leaf Clusters, American Theater Ribbon, World  War  II  Victory
Medal.

On 28 July 2003, the following awards were added to the  applicant’s  Report
of Separation:  The Air Medal with three Oak  Leaf  Clusters,  Distinguished
Unit Citation, Prisoner of War Medal (Germany:  3  November  1943  -  1  May
1945), American Campaign  Medal,  European-African-Middle  Eastern  Campaign
Medal with One Bronze Service Star.

On 13 April 1946 the Veterans Administration (VA) awarded  the  applicant  a
ten percent disability rating resulting from the following  conditions  held
to have incurred or aggravated during his time in World  War  II:   Scar  on
left groin.  Nervous stomach, or residuals of malnutrition,  fractured  leg,
and skin disease which were claimed by the applicant, but were not shown  by
the evidence of record, and were not shown on  the  medical  examination  at
the time of discharge.

Effective 20 November 1998, the DVA found  the  following  disabilities  had
increased in severity:

      Evaluation of traumatic arthritis, right knee which was 10%  increased
to 30% disabling.

      Evaluation of bells palsy, right side of face which was 10%  increased
to 50% disabling.
      Evaluation  of  anxiety  disorder  which  was  10%  increased  to  50%
disabling.

       His  overall  evaluation  is  70%  but  since  he  had  been  granted
individual unemployability he will be paid at the 100% rate.

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AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

AFPC/DPW recommended the applicant’s records be corrected  to  reflect  that
he was a POW from 3 November 1943 to 1 May 1945.

The evaluation, with attachments, is at Exhibit C.

AFPC/DPPPR recommend denial.  They indicated  that  the  applicant  did  not
provide any documentation to substantiate his claim.   His  medical  records
of January and April 1946 have no mention of an  injury  incurred  prior  to
his being a POW.  Since he was not injured as a result of enemy  action,  he
is not eligible for award of the Purple Heart Medal.

The evaluation, with attachments, is at Exhibit D.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

On 8 August 2003, copies of the Air Force evaluations were forwarded to  the
applicant for review and response within 30  days.   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 an error or injustice.  The applicant claims that  his  records
are incomplete because they do not reflect an aircraft accident or  that  he
was held as a POW.  He indicates that an allied aircraft hit  his  aircraft,
exploded and no crewmembers survived from the allied  aircraft.   His  plane
exploded after 80 miles of flight,  then  he  was  thrown  from  the  plane,
injuring his knee, hitting his head, and was knocked  unconscious.   He  was
found by a German soldier and was held at a German POW camp.   AFPC/DPW  has
corrected the applicant’s records to reflect he was a POW  from  3  November
1943 to 1 May 1945.  With regard to the PH issue, it is noted  that  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).  However,  there  is
no indication in his service medical records to  substantiate  that  he  was
injured as a direct result of enemy  action.   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  Purple
Heart.  Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the contrary,  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 an 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  BC-2003-
00899 in Executive Session on 4 September 2003 under the provisions  of  AFI
36-2603:

                 Ms. Patricia D. Vestal, Panel Chair
                 Ms. Nancy Wells Drury, Member
                 Mr. Robert H. Altman, Member

The following documentary evidence was considered:

   Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 12 March 2003, w/atchs.
   Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
   Exhibit C.  Letter, AFPC/DPW, dated 5 May 2003, w/atchs.
   Exhibit D.  Letter, AFPC/DPPPR, dated 23 July 2003, w/atchs.
   Exhibit E.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 8 August 2003.





                                   PATRICIA D. VESTAL
                                   Panel Chair