AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS 

RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS 

 
DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2012-00499 
COUNSEL:  NONE 
HEARING DESIRED:  NO 

IN THE MATTER OF: 
 
   
 
   
 
________________________________________________________________ 
 
APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: 
 
He be awarded the Purple Heart (PH) for injuries he received in 
China on 11 Dec 1943. 
 
________________________________________________________________ 
 
APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: 
 
During  World  War  II  (WWII),  as  the  aircraft  commander  of  a  B-
24D,  he  was  on  a  night  bombing  mission  out  of  a  Forward 
Operating  Base  (FOB)  at  Kweilin,  China.    During  takeoff,  his 
aircraft sustained severe tire damage/blowout caused from enemy 
shrapnel  left  on  the  runway  from  a  Japanese  attack.    This 
resulted  in  a  crash.    Four  crewmembers  were  declared  Killed  in 
Action (KIA) including his copilot and navigator.  He received a 
chest  contusion  and  lacerated  finger  and  was  hospitalized  for 
these injuries. 
 
The  applicant  did  not  submit  any  documents  in  support  of  his 
request.  His complete submission is at Exhibit A. 
 
________________________________________________________________ 
 
STATEMENT OF FACTS: 
 
The  applicant  was  a  pilot  assigned  to  the  375th  Bombardment 
Squadron, 308th Bombardment Group. 
 
The applicant’s medical records reflect he was hospitalized for 
two  days  for  a  chest  contusion  and  numerous  lacerations 
following a plane crash in China in Dec 1943. 
 
His  combat  record  reflects  that  he  accumulated  “425  Combat 
Hours, B-24, 14th Air Force, China.” 
 
________________________________________________________________ 
 
AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 
 
HQ  AFPC/DPSIDR  recommends  denial.    DPSIDR  states  the  applicant 
provided a detailed account surrounding the incident but he did 

 
 

 

 
 
not provide eyewitness accounts.  After a complete review of the 
applicant's  case,  and  in  view  of  the  absence  of  eyewitness 
accounts to the actual injury, lack of medical evidence, and the 
incident appearing to have been an accident and not due to enemy 
action they must recommend denial. 
 
DPSIDR  states  the  PH  is  awarded  to  members  of  the  U.S.  Armed 
Forces  who  have  been  wounded,  killed  or  who  have  died  or  may 
hereafter  die  of  wounds  received  in  action  against  an  enemy  of 
the  U.S.  or  opposing  force  as  a  result  of  an  act  of  any  such 
enemy or opposing armed force, an international terrorist attack 
or  during  military  operations  while  serving  as  part  of  a 
peacekeeping  force.    A  wound  for  which  the  award  is  made  must 
have  required  treatment,  not  merely  examination,  by  a  medical 
officer.    Additionally,  treatment  of  the  wound  shall  be 
documented in the Service member's medical and/or health record. 
Award  of  the  PH  may  be  made  for  wounds  treated  by  a  medical 
professional  other  than  a  medical  officer,  provided  a  medical 
officer  includes  a  statement  in  the  Service  member's  medical 
record that the extent of the wounds were such that they would 
have  required  treatment  by  a  medical  officer  if  one  had  been 
available to treat them. 
 
The complete DPSIDR evaluation is at Exhibit C. 
 
________________________________________________________________ 
 
APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: 
 
He  finds  the  advisory  opinion  very  disappointing.    It  does  not 
appear  to  show  any  serious  investigation  of  his  request,  and 
essentially  cites  his  lack  of  documentation  as  the  basis  for 
their recommendation of disapproval.  He is aware the objective 
is  to  insure  that  every  serviceman  receives  proper  recognition 
for  the  service  and  sacrifice  they  made  for  their  country.  
However, he thought the Air Force would make an effort to obtain 
the  medical  records,  accident  reports,  and  other  documentation 
that would substantiate his request.  After almost 70 years, he 
has  very  little  of  this  information  in  his  possession.    It 
certainly  must  be  available  in  various  WWII  Air  Force  and  Army 
Air Force record repositories. 
 
He  has  never  had  possession  of  his  medical  records  and  is  not 
aware  if  his  wartime  injuries  were  included.    If  the  injuries 
are not mentioned in his medical records it may be because the 
crash  occurred  at  a  FOB  in  Kweilin,  China  and  not  at  his 
assigned base at Chengkung, China.  This was a one-time mission 
with an aircraft and crew that were not permanently assigned to 
him.    He  had  no  administrative  support  at  Kweilin,  which  might 
add to the reason this medal "slipped through the cracks."  He 
also  suspects  there  was  little  administrative  contact  between 
the  two  hospitals.    However,  as  stated  in  his  request,  he 
suffered a chest contusion and a lacerated finger.  He spent a 
 
 
 

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night and a day in the Kweilin Hospital.  Although the Kweilin 
FOB  was  eventually  closed,  the  hospital  records  should  still 
exist  in  some  form.    The  crash  occurred  on  11  Dec  1943  in 
Kweilin, China.  Perhaps DPSIDR has the resources to help locate 
these records. 
 
He  provides  a  book  excerpt  which  reflects  his  mission,  the 
aircraft tail number (42-73321) and details of the crash.  Crew 
members  were  KIA  as  a  result  of  the  crash.    His  co-pilot  was 
killed less than three feet from him.  This should all be in the 
accident reports which, of course should also contain eyewitness 
accounts.  One eyewitness, whom he can instantly recall, is the 
officer who pulled him out of the wreck.  He is not aware if he 
is still alive. 
 
DPSIDR’s  statement  “...incident  appearing  to  have  been  an 
accident  and  not  due  to  enemy  action,”  reflects  no  cited 
evidence nor an audit trail that leads to this conclusion.  He 
asks  DPSIDR  to  locate  the  accident  report(s).    Shrapnel  on  a 
runway under constant attack was not uncommon.  During wartime, 
aircraft  had  to  take  off  from  those  runways,  although  they  may 
not have been cleared.  Adding a night mission to these factors 
likens  it  to  a  field  of  improvised  explosive  devices  lying  on 
the  runway.    Furthermore,  even  if  enemy  shrapnel  had  not  been 
the  cause  of  the  crash,  this  was  nevertheless  a  combat  mission 
in  progress.    The  instant  the  wheel  blocks  were  removed,  a 
combat  mission  was  underway.    The  subsequent  crash  occurred 
while "In Action."  He provides further evidence in attachments 
2 and 3. 
 
His complete submission, 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. 
 
3.  Insufficient  relevant  evidence  has  been  presented  to 
demonstrate  the  existence  of  error  or  injustice.    After 
thoroughly reviewing the evidence of record and the applicant’s 
contentions,  the  majority  of  the  Board  does  not  find  the 
evidence  submitted  sufficient  to  determine  the  applicant 
suffered  an  injury  as  a  result  of  the  act  of  an  enemy.    While 
the  evidence  provided  does  support  the  applicant  was 
participating  in  a  combat  mission  and  subsequently  received 
medical treatment after his aircraft crashed, unfortunately, the 
evidence available to us is not sufficient to determine that the 
aircraft crash was caused by enemy shrapnel.  This Board is not 
an investigative body and is dependent on the evidence provided 

 

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by  an  applicant  and  what  is  available  in  official  personnel 
records.  Further, it is the applicant who bears the burden of 
establishing  the  existence  of  an  error  or  injustice  in  the 
record.    Should  the  applicant  provide  an  eyewitness  statement 
from  someone  who  witnessed  the  circumstances  surrounding  his 
injury, the majority of the Board would be willing to reconsider 
his  request.    The  applicant’s  personal  sacrifice  and  unselfish 
service to his country is noted; however, without documentation 
to  substantiate  his  injury  was  caused  by  enemy  action,  the 
majority of the Board is unable to verify his entitlement to the 
Purple  Heart.    Therefore,  in  the  absence  of  evidence  to  the 
contrary, the majority of the Board finds 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  this  application 
in Executive Session on 18 Jul 2012, under the provisions of AFI 
36-2603: 
 
 

Panel Chair 
Member 
Member 
 

 

 
 
 

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By  a  majority  vote,  the  Board  recommended  denial  of  the 
application. XXX voted to grant the appeal, but does not wish to 
submit a Minority Report. The following documentary evidence was 
considered in AFBCMR BC-2012-00499: 
 
    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 24 Jan 2012. 
    Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records. 
    Exhibit C.  Letter, AFPC/DPSIDR dated 29 Mar 2012. 
    Exhibit D.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 27 Apr 2012 
    Exhibit E.  Rebuttal, Applicant, dated 18 May 2012, w/atchs. 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

  
Panel Chair 

  
  

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 

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