RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS


IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2003-01237
            INDEX CODE:  131.00

            COUNSEL:  NONE

            HEARING DESIRED:  NO



_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

His records be corrected to reflect promotion to the grade of captain.
_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

He should have been promoted to  the  grade  of  captain  based  on  a
provision in  the  2001  National  Defense  Authorization  Act  (NDAA)
governing Prisoner of War (POW) promotions.  He was a POW  from  April
1944 to April 1945.

In support of  his  request,  the  applicant  submits  copies  of  his
discharge  papers.   The   applicant’s   complete   submission,   with
attachments, is at Exhibit A.
_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant completed pilot training on 6  September  1942  and  was
appointed a staff sergeant pilot, Army Air Corps.  On 5 December 1942,
he was appointed a temporary flight  officer  and  ordered  to  active
duty.  On 2 April 1944, the applicant was appointed a temporary second
lieutenant (2LT), Air Corps,  Army  of  the  United  States,  and  was
voluntarily ordered  to  extended  active  duty.   He  served  in  the
European African Middle Eastern (EAME)  Theater  of  Operations  as  a
fighter pilot with the 318th Fighter Squadron, 325th Fighter Group  of
the 15th Air Force from 8 January 1943 to 3 June 1945.  He was  a  POW
in Germany from 18 April 1944 to 29 April 1945.

On 23 October 1945, the applicant was recommended for promotion to the
grade of first lieutenant  (1LT)  based  on  his  service  record  and
because it was presumed that if he had not been a POW, he  would  have
been promoted.  By Special Order No. 266, the applicant  was  promoted
to the temporary grade of 1LT, effective and with a date of rank of  7
November 1945.  On 31 July 1946, he was appointed the permanent  grade
of first lieutenant and  tendered  an  appointment  in  the  Officers’
Reserve Corps, Army of the United States.   On  14 October  1946,  the
applicant was relieved from active duty in the grade of lLT.  His tour
of active  duty  consisted  of  1  year,  5  months  and  13  days  of
continental service and 2 years, 4  months  and  26  days  of  foreign
service at the time of separation.

Following his separation, the applicant continued to serve as a member
of the Air Force Reserve in the grade of lLT.  He was promoted to  the
grade of captain, Reserve of the Air Force, with an effective date  of
1 July 1955.  On 16 September 1957, he was relieved from  his  Reserve
assignment and assigned to the Nonaffiliated Reserve  Section  (NARS).
On 11 February 1959, he was relieved from NARS and reassigned  to  the
Inactive Status List Reserve Section (ISLRS).  Effective 31 May  1961,
the applicant was relieved from ISLRS  and  assigned  to  the  Retired
Reserve Section and his name was placed on the  USAF  Reserve  Retired
List.

The  applicant’s  military  personnel  records  were  administratively
corrected to reflect award of the following decorations:   POW  Medal,
Air Medal with 11 Oak Leaf Clusters, American  Defense  Service  Medal
and the Good Conduct Medal.
_________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

HQ AFPC/DPPPO recommends the application be denied.  DPPPO states that
there are no provisions in the 2001 National Defense Authorization Act
(NDAA) that would entitle the applicant to be promoted to the grade of
captain.  The applicant received a one-time promotion authorized under
the provisions of Army Regulation 605-12  and  applicable  directives.
The applicant has  not  provided  any  documentation  to  support  his
contention that he should have been promoted to the grade of  captain.
The HQ AFPC/DPPPO evaluation, with attachments, is at Exhibit C.
_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded  to  applicant  on  1
August 2003 for review and response.  As of this date, this office has
received no response (Exhibit D).
_________________________________________________________________

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  recommendation  of   the
appropriate Air Force office of primary responsibility and  adopt  the
rationale expressed as the basis for our decision that  the  applicant
has failed to sustain his burden that he has suffered either an  error
or an injustice.  The record indicates  that  the  applicant  was,  in
fact, promoted to the grade of first lieutenant based on his status as
a POW in accordance with the criteria for such promotions in effect in
1945.  In view of the above and absent evidence that he was  qualified
and recommended for a further promotion and such a recommendation  was
improperly denied, 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 Docket  Number  BC-2003-
01237 in Executive Session on 16 October 2003, under the provisions of
AFI 36-2603:

                  Ms. Charlene M. Bradley, Panel Chair
                  Ms. Martha J. Evans, Member
                  Ms. Renee M. Collier, Member

The following documentary evidence was considered:

   Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 11 Feb 03, w/atchs.
   Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
   Exhibit C.  Letter, HQ AFPC/DPPPO, dated 16 Jul 03.
   Exhibit D.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 1 Aug 03.




                                   CHARLENE M. BRADLEY
                                   Panel Chair