RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 

AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS 

 

IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2010-02356 

 COUNSEL: NONE 

 HEARING DESIRED: NO 

 

 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: 

 

1. He be awarded the Air Medal (AM). 

 

2. He be awarded the Air Force Achievement Medal (AFAM). 

 

3. He be authorized the Valor device for his Air Force 
Outstanding Unit Award (AFOUA) – administratively corrected to 
reflect AFOUA with One Oak Leaf Cluster (AFOUA w/1OLC). 

 

4. He be awarded the Air Force Longevity Service Award (AFLSA). 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: 

 

He recently found reference to the award criteria for each medal 
on the internet. He believes he is entitled to each of these 
medals for the following reasons: 

 

 a. He flew 40 sorties on 30 consecutive days while transporting 
and treating his fellow wounded comrades. He should be awarded 
the AM for his service. While assigned on temporary duty to the 
57th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron, Clark AB, Philippines, he 
flew into and out of Da Nang, Cam Rahn Bay, and Tan Son Nhut Air 
Bases. He qualified for his Air Crew Member Badge. 

 

 b. He received Certificates of Recognition and Academic 
Achievement while assigned to the Air Training Command at 
Sheppard AFB and he should be awarded the AFAM for his service. 
He feels he met the requirements to be awarded the AFAM; however, 
the AFAM was not established until 1980 and he was discharged 
from the Air Force in 1970. The internet did not indicate 
whether the award would be retroactive or not. 

 

 c. He entered the Air Force under the Delayed Enlistment 
Program in Oct 66 and was discharged in Dec 70; however, he did 
not enter active duty until 11 Jan 67. He should be awarded the 
AFLSA for serving a total of over 4 years. 

 

 

 d. He would like to know if he is authorized to wear the bronze 
“V” for his service with the 57th Aeromedical Evacuation Squadron 


from 15 Apr 69 to 10 Jul 69. He served as a medical technician 
primarily aboard a C-141 transporting members in and out of 
Vietnam. 

 

In support of his request, the applicant provides a copy of his 
travel orders, a copy of his DD Form 214 (Armed Forces of the 
United States Report of Transfer or Discharge), copies of 
training certificates, a copy of a newspaper article, and several 
other documents extracted from his military records. 

 

His complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

STATEMENT OF FACTS: 

 

The applicant entered the Delayed Enlistment Program and took his 
oath of enlistment on 12 Oct 66. His enlistment in the Regular 
Air Force began on 11 Jan 67. He received an honorable discharge 
on 9 Dec 70 after serving 3 years, 10 months, and 29 days on 
active duty. 

 

The AM is awarded to any person who, while serving in any 
capacity with the Armed Forces of the United States, subsequent 
to 8 September 1939, distinguishes himself or herself by heroic 
or meritorious achievement while participating in an aerial 
flight. 

 

The AFAM is awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United 
States and foreign military personnel, below the rank of O-6, 
after 30 September 1981, who, while serving in any capacity with 
the U.S. Air Force, distinguishes themselves by meritorious 
service or achievement. 

 

The AFLSA shall be awarded to all service members of the U.S. Air 
Force who complete four continuous years of honorable active or 
Reserve military service. Active and Reserve military service 
cannot be combined for a total of four years service. 

 

DPSIDR verified the applicant’s entitlement to the AFOUA w/1 OLC. 
DPSIDRA informed the applicant that his unit did not receive the 
AFOUA w/V. The applicant’s record will be updated by the 
appropriate office accordingly. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

 

 

 

 

 

AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 

 


DPSIDRA recommends denial of the AM, AFAM, and AFLSA. DPSIDRA 
states IAW the governing law, the original or reconstructed 
written award recommendation is required for the recommended 
individual. The recommendation must be made by someone, other 
than the member himself, preferably the commander or supervisor 
at the time of the act of achievement, with firsthand knowledge 
of the member’s accomplishments. The recommendation must include 
the name of the decoration (i.e., AM), reason for recognition 
(heroism, achievement, or meritorious service), inclusive dates 
of the act, and a narrative description of the act. The 
recommending official must sign the recommendation. Also, a 
proposed citation is required and chain of command endorsements 
are encouraged. Statements from fellow comrades, eyewitness 
statements attesting to the act, sworn affidavits, and other 
documentation substantiating the recommendation should be 
included with the package. DPSIDR states the applicant has not 
provided any documentation for entitlement to the AM and the 
AFAM. Furthermore, the applicant cannot recommend himself for a 
decoration. As for the applicant’s entitlement to the AFLSA, 
DPSIDRA notes the active duty time and inactive Reserve time 
cannot be combined to meet the award criteria of four years 
Active or Reserve service. Therefore, the applicant is 
ineligible for entitlement to the AFLSA. 

 

The DPSIDRA complete evaluation is at exhibit C. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 

 

A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the applicant 
on 24 Sep 10 for review and comment within 30 days. 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 with regard to 
the applicant’s request for the AM, AFAM, AFOUA w/V, and AFLSA. 
In this respect, we note that the AFAM did not exist when the 
applicant served in the military and the AFOUA Valor device was 
not awarded to his unit of assignment for the period in question. 
After a thorough review of the evidence of record and applicant's 
submission, 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 relief beyond that 
already granted administratively is not warranted. Therefore, we 
find no basis to favorably consider 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-2010-02356 in Executive Session on 3 Mar 11, under the 
provisions of AFI 36-2603: 

 

 , Panel Chair 

 , Member 

 , Member 

 

The following documentary evidence was considered: 

 

 Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 27 Jun 10, w/atchs. 

 Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. 

 Exhibit C. Letter, AFPC/DPSIDRA, dated 3 Aug 10. 

 Exhibit D. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 24 Sep 10. 

 

 

 

 

 

 Panel Chair