RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS


IN THE MATTER OF:	DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2013-00682

		COUNSEL:  NONE

		HEARING DESIRED:  NO 


________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

The following items on his DD Form 214, Certificate of Release 
or Discharge from Active Duty, be corrected as follows:

Item 11, Primary Specialty, be corrected to reflect Utilities 
Apprentice, rather than Electrical Apprentice.

Item 13, Decorations, Medals, Badges, Citations and Campaign 
Ribbons awarded or authorized, be corrected to include the 
Kosovo Campaign Medal, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (AFEM), 
and North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Medal - Kosovo 
Operations.

________________________________________________________________

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

He was deployed to Balikesir, Turkey in support of Operation 
ALLIED FORCE.  The other service members he was deployed with 
received the medals.  He believes he is eligible for these 
awards because he was in the area of eligibility (AOE) and was 
injured and would have required evacuation.

In support of his appeal, the applicant provides a copy of his 
DD Form 214, DD Form 2366, Montgomery GI Bill Act of 1984 
(MGIB), an Individual summary, and other documents related to 
this matter.

The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at 
Exhibit A.

________________________________________________________________

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant served on active duty from 23 Jul 97 through 
3 Mar 00 when he was honorably discharged and credited with two 
years, seven months, and ten days of active service.  He was not 
credited with any foreign service.

On 13 May 13, AFPC/DPSIT reviewed the applicant’s request and 
determined Block 14, Military Education, of his DD Form 214 
should be amended to reflect Utilities Systems Course – 1997 and 
his records will be corrected administratively.  

On 14 May 13, AFPC/DPSIT informed the applicant that block 15a, 
Member Contributed to Post-Vietnam Era Veterans Educational 
Assistance Program, of his DD Form 214 was accurate.  DPSIT 
stated Block 15a pertains to service members who entered active 
duty under the Veterans’ Education Assistance Program (VEAP) 
between 1 Jan 77 and before 1 Jul 85.  However, the applicant 
entered active duty on 23 Jul 97 and elected to participate in 
the Montgomery GI Bill instead. 

The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are 
described in the letter prepared by the Air Force office of 
primary responsibility, which is attached at Exhibit C.    

________________________________________________________________

AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

AFPC/DPSID recommends denial of the applicant’s request for the 
Kosovo Campaign Medal or the AFEM, indicating there is no 
evidence of an error or an injustice.  The Kosovo Campaign Medal 
was established to recognize military service performed in 
Kosovo from 24 Mar 99 to a date to be determined.  The service 
member must have participated in or served in direct support 
the Kosovo Air Campaign, 24 Mar 99 through 10 Jun 99; or the 
Kosovo Defense Campaign, 11 Jun 99 through a date to be 
determined.  The service member must have been permanently 
assigned, attached, or detailed to a unit that participated in 
or was engaged in direct support of the designated operations 
for 30 consecutive or 60 non-consecutive days in the AOE.  
These time limits may be waived if the service member was 
killed, wounded, or injured requiring medical evacuation from 
the operation.  However, there was no evidence found in the 
applicant’s official military personnel record to verify his 
entitlement to the Kosovo Campaign Medal.

The AFEM is awarded to service members who, after 1 Jul 58, 
participated in a military operation and encountered foreign 
armed opposition, or were in danger of hostile action by foreign 
armed forces, even though it did not materialize.  Service 
members must have been permanently assigned, attached, or 
detailed to a unit that participated in or engaged in direct 
support of the operation for 30 consecutive or for 60 non-
consecutive days and provided the support in the AOE.  These 
time requirements may be waived if the service member was 
wounded or injured and required medical evacuation from the 
AOE.  

While the applicant states he was deployed to Turkey in support 
of Operation ALLIED FORCE, Operation ALLIED FORCE is not an 
approved operation for award of the AFEM.  In addition, 
Turkey is not in the AOE for Operation ALLIED FORCE.  During 
the period in question the AFEM may have been awarded for a 
deployment to Incirlik AB in support of Operation NORTHERN 
WATCH.  However, there was no official documentation found to 
substantiate the applicant was deployed to Incirlik, Turkey in 
support of Operation NORTHERN WATCH.  Although the applicant 
provided a copy of his travel orders, there has was no evidence 
provided, such as travel voucher, to substantiate the travel was 
carried out.  Furthermore, the travel orders did not specify a 
destination or dates for the travel.

The applicant provided two memorandums of appreciation to 
substantiate he was deployed to Turkey in support of Operation 
ALLIED FORCE.  However, these memorandums are not addressed to 
the applicant, but rather to a fellow service member.  It is 
noted the fellow service member was listed on the travel order 
provided by the applicant.  The applicant also provided copies 
of Facebook correspondence where the fellow service member 
states he received the medals for his service in Turkey.

The applicant further stated his injury was incurred in the area 
of operation and it was significant to warrant evacuation.  He 
believes he would have been evacuated if his unit had not 
returned stateside.  In addition the witness indicates in his 
statement that he saw the applicant was in pain while they were 
loading their gear to leave Turkey and that they had been there 
for two weeks.  The applicant also provided a copy of the study 
“Frequency and Cause of Nonbattle Injuries Air Evacuated from 
Operations Iraqi Freedom and Enduring Freedom, U.S. Army, 2001-
2006.”  There is no official evidence verifying the applicant 
was injured and was medically evacuated from the AOE during 
Operation ALLIED FORCE.

The NATO Medal (Kosovo) is awarded for 30 days of continuous or 
accumulated duty in the Kosovo AOE, the former Republic of 
Yugoslavia or 90 days of continuous or accumulated Italy, 
Greece, and Hungary in direct support of NATO operations.  To 
obtain award of the NATO Medal, the applicant must apply to 
NATO as the approval authority, through the United States 
National Military Representative at Supreme Headquarters Allied 
Powers Europe (SHAPE) J-1.

A complete copy of the AFPC/DPSID 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 18 Oct 13 for review and comment within 30 days 
(Exhibit C).  As of this date, no response has been received by 
this office.

________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:

1.  The applicant has not 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 an error or injustice with respect 
to the applicant’s request for the Kosovo Campaign Medal and the 
Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal.  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 the applicant has not 
been the victim of an error or injustice.  As for his request 
related to the NATO Medal (Kosovo), we note the applicant has 
failed to exhaust his administrative remedies and therefore find 
no basis to recommend granting this aspect of his request.  In 
this respect, we note the comments of the Air Force OPR 
indicating the applicant should contact the United States 
National Military Representative at Supreme Headquarters Allied 
Powers Europe (SHAPE) J-1 to ascertain his potential 
eligibility for the requested medal.  As for his request 
related to his primary specialty, as reflected on his DD Form 
214, other than his own assertions, the applicant has provided 
no evidence that would persuade us that the information 
reflected on his DD Form 214 as it pertains to his specialty is 
incorrect.  We further note, the applicant was advised the 
portion of his request relating to his military education, as 
reflected on his DD form 214, was resolved administratively.  In 
addition, we note the applicant was advised that the information 
on his DD Form 214 related to participation in Post-Vietnam Era 
Veteran’s Education Assistance Program (VEAP) was accurate and 
did not require any action and concur with this determination.  
Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find 
no basis to recommend granting relief beyond that rendered 
administratively.

________________________________________________________________

THE BOARD DETERMINES THAT:

The applicant be notified the evidence presented did not 
demonstrate the existence of material error or injustice; the 
application was denied without a personal appearance; and 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-2013-00682 in Executive Session on 18 Mar 14, under 
the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

	, Panel Chair
	, Member
	, Member

The following documentary evidence was considered:

	Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 3 Feb 13, w/atchs.
	Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records
	Exhibit C.  Letter, AFPC/DPSID, dated 16 Sep 13.
	Exhibit D.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 18 Oct 13.




                                   
                                   Panel Chair