RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

IN THE MATTER OF:	DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2004-01787
		INDEX CODE:  100.00
		COUNSEL:  NONE

		HEARING DESIRED:  YES

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APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

He be offered continuation in the grade of captain so that he may reach the sanctuary.

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APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

He was twice non-selected for promotion to the grade of major and a mandatory date of separation (DOS) of 31 Aug 04 was established.  The mandatory DOS is less than five months short of him reaching 18 years of service, which would place him in the sanctuary and allow him to retire with 20 years of service.  A normal captain twice passed over to major would be at 9 or 10 years of service.  Because he is prior enlisted, he has already over 17 years of service.  He is able to return to the grade of senior airman but doing so will create a severe and undue personal, medical, and financial hardship on his family.  Humanitarian and Exceptional Family member Program (EFMP) assignments and his struggles to ensure adequate medical treatment for his wife and son directly contributed to his nonselection for promotion.  It is unjust to penalize him for the circumstances, which were beyond his control.  He has a breadth of experience as an Air Force officer and continuation as a captain is in the best interest of the Air Force.   

In support of his request, applicant provided personal statements.  His complete submission, with attachments is at Exhibit A.

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STATEMENT OF FACTS:

Applicant served as an enlisted member for 7 years, 9 months and 1 day prior to his appointment as a second lieutenant, Reserve of the Air Force on 14 May 94.  He was voluntarily ordered to extended active duty on 18 Oct 94.  He was progressively promoted to the grade of captain, having assumed that grade effective and with a date of rank of 1 Aug 98.  He was considered and not selected for promotion to the grade of major for the second time by the Calendar Year 2003B (CY03B), Central Major Selection Board and was not selected for continuation by the CY03B Captain Selective Continuation Board.  As a result, a mandatory DOS of 31 Aug 04 was established. He will reach 18 years of total active military service on 17 Jan 05.  

He is prior enlisted and is authorized to reenlist as a senior airman.  He will then be able to complete 20 years TAFMS on 31 Jan 07 and will be eligible for enlisted retirement.  However, he will be 2 months short of 10 years of active commissioned service and will be required to retire in the enlisted grade.  After 30 years of service (active service time plus time on the retired list) he may be advanced for pay purposes to the highest officer grade satisfactorily held on active duty.  

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AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

AFPC/DPPPO recommends denial.  DPPPO states his Air Force Specialty Code (AFSC) 13S, did not meet the eligibility criteria established for continuation at the CY03B continuation board.  The board only considered rated line officers with a valid rate distribution and training management code in AFSC 13B.  His current mandatory DOS of 31 Aug 04 puts him approximately 5 months short of sanctuary.  His Officer Selection Record reveals no derogatory data that would have prevented him from being selected for promotion.  The DPPPO evaluation is at Exhibit C.

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APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

Applicant states that continuance was only offered to a select few AFSC’s for the CY03 major’s board.  The last time continuance was not offered to all AFSC’s was during the Reduction in Forces on the 1990’s.  Even then, officers with more than 14 years of service were offered continuance to 15 years and authorized early retirement.  The CY03B board is apparently the first time that early retirement has not been offered to officers over 15 years of service when continuation was denied.  An unfortunate oversight must have been made which did not take into account the small number of officers that would be affected.  The Air Force moved his major’s board up by two years, which removed the time in which he should have had to finish PME, ending his career.  The applicant reiterated the circumstances surrounding his family’s medical situation and adds that because he has an involuntary separation date of 31 Aug 04, the Air Force Academy hospital will no longer support his wife’s medical treatments since it took away from their training funds.  At the same time, Tri-Care announced they would no longer authorize out-of-state visits.  These decisions made it vital that he accept earlier than mandated separation in order to provide for his wife and son.  He is now a senior airman and due to paperwork errors, he is experiencing pay problems.  

His complete response is at Exhibit E.

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THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT:

1.  The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing law or regulations.

2.  The application was timely filed.

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 do not find his contentions sufficiently persuasive to override the rationale expressed by the Air Force.  While we are not without sympathy towards the applicant's circumstances, we are not persuaded that based on his proximity to reaching the sanctuary he has been the victim of an injustice nor do we find evidence that he was treated differently from similarly situated individuals.  We note that he is eligible to continue serving as an enlisted member until he reaches retirement eligibility and upon reaching 30 years of total service, he will at that time be advanced for pay purposes, to the grade of captain.  Therefore, we agree with the opinion and recommendation of the Air Force office of primary responsibility and adopt their rationale as the basis for our conclusion that the applicant has not been the victim of an error or injustice.  In the absence of persuasive evidence to the contrary, we find no compelling basis to recommend granting the relief sought in this application.

4.  The applicant's case is adequately documented and it has not been shown that a personal appearance with or without counsel will materially add to our understanding of the issue involved.  Therefore, the request for a hearing is not favorably considered.

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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.

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The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2004-01787 in Executive Session on 15 Jul 04, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

The following documentary evidence was considered:

    Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 26 May 04, w/atchs.
    Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
    Exhibit C.  Letter, AFPC/DPPPO, dated 22 Jun 04.
    Exhibit D.  Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 25 Jun 04.
    Exhibit E.  Letter, Applicant, dated 25 Jun 04