RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
             AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

IN THE MATTER OF:      DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2004-01130
            INDEX CODE:  108.07
            COUNSEL:  NONE
            HEARING DESIRED:  NO

Mandatory Case Completion Date:  8 Oct 05

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

His service-connected medical conditions,  coronary  artery  bypass,  kidney
stones, inguinal hernia,  and  diabetes  mellitus,  be  assessed  as  combat
related in order to  qualify  for  compensation  under  the  Combat  Related
Special Compensation (CRSC) Act.

_________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

His duties were under hazardous conditions and under  conditions  simulating
war.  He was the facilitator of a strategic  alert  facility.   The  bombers
and tankers were loaded with nuclear  weapons  and  full  fuel  loads.   The
aircraft were to remain able to be airborne within 6 minutes.   He  ran  the
facility for four years, which led to his heart attack.

In support of his request, applicant provided documentation associated  with
his CRSC denial and a document extracted from  his  Department  of  Veterans
Affairs (DVA) records.  His complete submission,  with  attachments,  is  at
Exhibit A.
_________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

Applicant contracted his initial enlistment in the Regular Air Force  on  22
Jun 60.  He was progressively promoted to  the  grade  of  master  sergeant,
having assumed that grade effective and with a date of rank  of  1  Sep  81.
He served as an Inventory  Management  Specialist,  an  In-flight  Refueling
Operator, and as an Alert Facility Manager.

An MEB was convened on 14 May 86  and  referred  his  case  to  an  Informal
Physical Evaluation Board (IPEB) with  a  diagnosis  of  Status  post  acute
anterior  wall  myocardial   infarction,   and   absorptive   hypercalciuric
nephrolithiasis.  On 10 Jun 86, the IPEB found him fit for further  military
service based on a diagnosis of coronary artery disease and  recommended  he
be returned to duty.  Applicant did not agree with the  IPEB's  finding  and
recommendation.   On  5  Aug  86,  the  IPEB  reconsidered  his   case   and
recommended that he be placed  on  the  Temporary  Disability  Retired  List
(TDRL) with a combined compensable rating of 60%.   The  applicant  did  not
agree with the findings and recommended disposition of the IPEB.  On  5  Sep
86, the Formal PEB (FPEB) found him unfit  for  duty  with  a  diagnosis  of
coronary artery disease and hypercalciuric nephrolithiasis  and  recommended
he be placed on the TDRL with a compensable percentage of  100%.   Each  PEB
found that his conditions were not the direct result of  armed  conflict  or
caused by an instrumentality of war,  during  a  period  of  war.    He  was
placed on the TDRL on 17 Jan 87.  On 9 Feb 88, the Air  Force  PEB  directed
that the applicant  be  permanently  retired  from  the  Air  Force  with  a
combined disability rating of 100%.   On  19  Feb  88,  he  was  permanently
retired after serving 26 years, 6 months, and 25 days on active duty

His CRSC application was disapproved on 23 Mar 04 based upon the  fact  that
his service-connected medical conditions were determined not to  be  combat-
related.  On 17 Jun 04, the portion of his  application  pertaining  to  his
impaired hearing was approved, rated at 0%.

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AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

AFPC/DPPD recommends denial.  DPPD states review  of  his  service  and  DVA
medical records shows his coronary artery bypass,  kidney  stones,  inguinal
hernia, and diabetes mellitus are  not  combat  related.   There  is  little
doubt his service connected medical conditions  occurred  while  in  service
performing duties related to his Air Force specialty.  Although  stress  can
be a contributing factor to heart disease, heart disease cannot be  approved
as stress related based on stress alone as it is  difficult  to  objectively
determine stress as the definitive cause of the condition rather than  other
routine causes.  For coronary artery disease to qualify for  CRSC,  it  must
be secondary to Agent Orange  contracted  diabetes  or  presumptive  to  POW
internment.  The DPPD evaluation is at Exhibit C.

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APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

Applicant provided numerous responses to the Air Force evaluation  in  which
he reiterates that the stress related to his duties was a major  contributor
to his heart attack, which occurred in March 1986.  The bypass  surgery  was
not performed until December 1986.  In support of his response, he  provided
supporting statements and documents associated with his  Air  Medal  awards.
His complete responses, with attachments, is at Exhibit E.

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THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:

1.  The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided  by  existing  law  or
regulations.

2.  The application was timely filed.

3.  Insufficient relevant evidence has been  presented  to  demonstrate  the
existence of error or injustice.  After a thorough review of  the  available
evidence of record, it is our opinion  that  the  service-connected  medical
conditions the applicant believes are combat-related were  not  incurred  as
the direct result of armed conflict, while engaged in hazardous service,  in
the performance of duty under  conditions  simulating  war,  or  through  an
instrumentality of war, and  therefore,  do  not  qualify  for  compensation
under the CRSC Act.  We agree with the opinion  and  recommendation  of  the
Air Force office of primary responsibility and adopt its  rationale  as  the
basis for our conclusion that the applicant has not been the  victim  of  an
error or injustice.  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  BC-2004-
01130 in Executive Session on 6 Apr 05, under  the  provisions  of  AFI  36-
2603:

      Mr. Thomas S. Markiewicz, Chair
      Mr. James W. Russell III, Member
      Mr. Christopher Carey, Member

The following documentary evidence was considered:

    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 1 Apr 04, w/atchs.
    Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
    Exhibit C.  Letter, AFPC/DPPD, dated 18 Jun 04.
    Exhibit D.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 25 Jun 04.
    Exhibit E.  Letter, Applicant, dated 28 Jun 04, w/atchs.




                                   THOMAS S. MARKIEWICZ
                                   Chair