DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2011-05048 
  
COUNSEL:  NONE 
HEARING DESIRED: NO 

 
                       RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 
         AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS 
 
IN THE MATTER OF: 
   
 
   
 
   
 
________________________________________________________________ 
 
APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: 
 
1.  He be awarded the Vietnam Service Medal (VSM).   
 
2.  He be awarded the Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal (RVCM).   
 
________________________________________________________________ 
 
APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: 
 
He  was  ordered  to  Udorn  AB,  Thailand  in  November  1974  and 
assigned  to  the  432  CSG  which  was  under  the  control  of  the  7th 
Air Force.  His duties in the 432 Aircraft Maintenance Squadron 
(AMS)  were  to  maintain  the  ballistics  and  navigational  systems 
on  the  F4  Phantoms.    He  rode  launch  trucks  for  dozens  of 
sorties,  debriefed  returning  pilots  on  aircraft  systems 
performance, and repaired returned aircraft in direct support of 
Operation  FREQUENT  WIND.    He  left  the  Southeast  Asia  (SEA) 
region in August 1975 as part of the Palace Lightning withdrawal 
plan.   
 
In support of his request, the applicant submits a copy of his 
DD  Form  214,  documents  related  to  his  Udorn  AB  assignment,  and 
letters  to  the  National  Personnel  Records  Center  and  his 
Congressman.   
 
The  applicant’s  complete  submission,  with  attachments,  is  at 
Exhibit A.  
 
________________________________________________________________ 
 
STATEMENT OF FACTS: 
 
The  applicant  is  a  former  member  of  the  Regular  Air  Force  who 
served from 4 October 1972 to 30 November 1976.  He was trained 
and  served  as  an  Inertial  and  Radar  Navigation  Systems 
Specialist  and  was  progressively  promoted  to  the  rank  of 
Sergeant  (Sgt)  with  a  pay  grade  of  (E-4)  effective 
1 November 1974.  The applicant was discharged with an honorable 
characterization  of  service  and  credited  with  serving  3  years, 

 

 
 

 

 
9 months,  and  27  days  of  active  duty  which  included,  11  months 
and 18 days of Foreign and/or Sea Service.   
 
The applicant’s DD Form 214 does not reflect award of the VSM or 
RVCM.   
 
________________________________________________________________ 
 
AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 
 
AFPC/DPSIDRA recommends denial.  DPSIDRA states the applicant’s 
dates of assignment in Thailand were well after the ending date 
of  28  March  1973  for  award  of  either  the  VSM  or  the  RVCM; 
therefore,  the  applicant  is  ineligible  for  award  of  the  VSM  or 
the RVCM based on the inclusive period of the award.   
 
The  VSM  is  awarded  to  all  service  members  of  the  U.S.  Armed 
Forces  serving  at  any  time  between  4  July  1965  and 
28 March 1973,  in  Vietnam,  its  contiguous  waters  or  airspace 
there-over and to all members of the U.S. Armed Forces serving 
at any time between 4 July 1965 and 28 March 1973, in Thailand, 
Laos  or  Cambodia,  their  contiguous  waters  or  the  airspace 
there-over, in direct support of operations in Vietnam.  To be 
eligible  a  service  member  must:  1.  Be  permanently  assigned, 
attached or detailed for one or more days, with an organization 
participating  in  or  directly  supporting  ground  (military) 
operations.  2. Be permanently assigned, attached or detailed 
for one or more days, aboard a naval vessel directly supporting 
military operations.  3. Have actually participated as a crew 
member  in  one  or  more  aerial  flights  directly  supporting 
military operations.  4. Have served on temporary duty for 30 
consecutive days or 60 non-consecutive days.  Those limitations 
may  be  waived  for  personnel  participating  in  actual  combat 
operations.   
 
The RVCM is awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United 
States who: 1. Served for six months in South Vietnam during the 
period 1 Mar 61 to 28 Mar 73; 2. Served outside the geographical 
limits of South Vietnam and contributed direct combat support to 
the  RVN  Armed  Forces  for  an  aggregate  of  six  months.    Only 
members  of  the  Armed  Forces  of  the  United  States  who  meet  the 
criteria  established  for  the  Armed  Forces  Expeditionary  Medal 
(AFEM),  (Vietnam)  or  the  VSM  during  the  period  of  service 
required  are  considered  to  have  contributed  direct  combat 
support to the Republic of Vietnam Armed Forces; or 3. Did not 
complete  the  length  of  service  required  in  item  (1)  or  (2) 
above,  but  who,  during  wartime,  were:  a.  wounded  by  the  enemy 
(in  a  military  action);  b.  captured  by  the  enemy  during  action 
or in the line of duty, later rescued, released; or c. killed in 
action or in the line of duty; or 4. Were assigned in Vietnam on 
28 January 1973, and who served a minimum of 60 calendar days in 
Vietnam  during  the  period  of  29  January  1973  through 
28 March 1973. 

 

 
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DPSIDRA  further  states  the  dates  of  the  applicant’s  tour  in 
Thailand  coincides  with  Operation  Eagle  Pull  (OEP),  Operation 
Frequent Wind (OFW) and the SS Mayaguez incident, which are all 
operations  eligible  for  the  AFEM.    If  entitlement  to  the  AFEM 
can be verified, it could be traded for the VSM.  However, they 
were  unable  to  locate  official  documentation  that  verifies  the 
applicant  was  directly  deployed  in  support  to  one  of  the 
operations.    Without  evidence  to  support  the  claim  of  his 
presence  in  the  designated  AOE  for  any  of  the  operations,  the 
applicant is ineligible for award of the AFEM.   
 
The complete DPSIDRA evaluation is at exhibit C. 
 
________________________________________________________________ 
 
APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 
 
In addition to reiterating his duties in support of the aircraft 
assigned to the 432 TRW, the applicant responded with a comment 
that  the  432  TRW  was  “deployed”  in  support  of  all  the  sorties 
for OEP, OFW and the SS Mayaguez incident in 1975.  He questions 
whether or not the flight line crews of the 432nd that supported 
the  sorties  were  also  considered  to  have  been  deployed. 
Additionally,  he  included,  as  an  attachment,  an  internet 
document  outlining  the  DoD  1348  C6.6.1.1.5.,  September  1996, 
revision of dates of eligibility for the VSM between 15 November 
1961 to 28 March 1973, and from 29 April 1975 to 30 April 1975.   
 
The  applicant’s  complete  response,  with  attachments,  is  at 
Exhibit E.  
 
________________________________________________________________ 
 
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.   
 
.  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  (OPR)  and 
adopt  its  rationale  as  the  basis  for  our  conclusion  that  the 
applicant has not been the victim of an error or injustice.  Due 
to  the  absence  of  official  documentation  that  verifies  the 
applicant  was  directly  deployed  in  support  to  one  of  the 
operations, he is not entitled to the VSM.  Without award of the 
VSM,  the  applicant  cannot  qualify  for  the  RVCM.    Therefore,  in 

 

 
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the  absence  of  evidence  to  the  contrary,  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  this  application 
BC-2011-05048  in  Executive  Session  on  9  August  2012,  under  the 
provisions of AFI 36-2603: 
 
 
 
 
The following documentary evidence was considered: 
 
    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149 dated 19 December 2011, w/atchs. 
    Exhibit B.  Applicant’s Master Personnel Records. 
    Exhibit C.  Letter, AFPC/DPSIDRA, dated 3 February 2012. 
    Exhibit D.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 24 February 2012.  
    Exhibit E.  Letter, Applicant, dated 4 March 2012, 
                w/atchs.  
 
 
 
 
                                    
                                   Panel Chair 
 

 Panel Chair 
  Member 
  Member 

 

 
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