RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 

AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS 

 

IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2010-04652 

 COUNSEL: NONE 

 HEARING DESIRED: NOT INDICATED 

 

 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: 

 

He would like service credit for his time served in the Air Force 
Reserve (AFR) from 18 Jul 56 to 6 Sep 61. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: 

 

He served in the AFR; however, he was informed that his records 
were destroyed in a fire at the National Personnel Records Center 
(NPRC), and that he would not receive any credit for his service. 
He has been trying to correct this problem for 20 years without 
success. 

 

He joined the AFR in New Paltz, NY, to take a pre-commissioning 
course that he completed and concurrently served on annual 
training from 1957 to 1958 at Mitchell Field, NY, and Suffolk 
County AFB, as a personnelist in the grade of E-5. 

 

During his time with the AFR, he was also assigned to the Armed 
Forces Industrial College at Kingston, NY, and was mobilized to 
an un-named base in Turkey. After he finished the pre-
commissioning course, he completed a number of correspondence 
courses and then took a physical and failed the eye examination. 
At that time, he was advised that if he did not have wings, the 
chances for good assignments in the Air Force were very limited. 
He did not pursue his commission and was discharged on 6 Sep 61. 

 

After being discharged from the AFR, he joined the Army Reserve 
and remained in the Army Reserve until joining the Washington 
Army National Guard. After he retired, he tried to reconstruct 
his records knowing that his honorable discharge from the AFR was 
a part of his Army Reserve records, but was horrified to find out 
that those records and his AFR records were destroyed in the fire 
at the NPRC. 

 

In support of his request, the applicant provides excerpts from 
his official military records. 

 

 

 

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


 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

STATEMENT OF FACTS: 

 

The relevant facts pertaining to this application are contained 
in the letter prepared by the appropriate office of the Air 
Force. Accordingly, there is no need to recite these facts in 
this Record of Proceedings. 

 

_________________________________________________________________ 

 

AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 

 

ARPC/DPTS recommends denial. DPTS states the applicant did not 
provide any documents that substantiate his claim for serving in 
the AFR. DPTS notes there is no course completion certificate 
for the pre-commissioning course; no annual training orders, no 
assignment order placing him at the Armed Forces Industrial 
College, no mobilization orders to Turkey, no correspondence 
course completion certificates, no medical records, nor an 
honorable discharge certificate. In addition, the itemized 
statement of earnings does not show a relationship between the 
periods stated in his letter. The documents provided by the 
applicant do not piece together any Air Force Reserve points. 

 

The ARPC/DPTS complete evaluation is at Exhibit B. 

 

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APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 

 

The applicant reiterates his original contentions by explaining 
in further detail the events that occurred during that time. He 
does not have copies of orders or any other documents to 
substantiate his claim and states that is why he mentions the 
material in his Army Reserve file was destroyed in the fire. 

 

The statement provided by ARPC/DPTS that states, “The applicant 
has not provided any documentation to support his account of Air 
Force Reserve service,” is incorrect. DD Form 4, Immediate 
Reenlistment, shows the dates of his service and his AFR serial 
number. After writing to the NPRC, he was informed, “The record 
needed to answer your inquiry [regarding USAFR service] is not in 
our files. If the records were here on July 12, 1973 it would 
have been in the area that suffered the most damage in the fire 
on that date and may have been destroyed.” 

 

It is not logical to assume that because he does not have an 
honorable discharge certificate he never served, he would not 
have been allowed to enlist in the Army Reserve without an 
honorable discharge. 


 

He is not trying to gain something that he is not entitled to; 
rather, he is trying to correct an injustice. When the records 
were destroyed in Vietnam, the soldiers were interviewed and 
based on the information provided, the records were 
reconstructed. His records were not lost in combat, but were 
lost due to no fault of his own. 

 

The applicant’s complete submission is at 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 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. Nevertheless, the 
Board would like to point out to the applicant that in order to 
grant service credit for time he asserts he served in Vietnam the 
exact dates must be provided. Therefore, in the absence of 
evidence to the contrary, we find no 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-2010-04652 in Executive Session on 30 Aug 11, under the 
provisions of AFI 36-2603: 

 

 , Panel Chair 

 , Member 

 , Member 

 


The following documentary evidence for Docket Number BC-2010-04652 
was considered: 

 

 Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 6 Dec 10, w/atchs. 

 Exhibit B. Letter, ARPC/DPTS, dated 3 Jun 11. 

 Exhibit C. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 17 Jun 11. 

 Exhibit D. Letter, Applicant, dated 25 Jun 11. 

 

 

 

 

 

 Panel Chair