RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2014-05036 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: His Operational Flying Duty Accumulation (OFDA) be corrected to reflect 147 gate months and his 18-year status be restored. APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: His OFDA was changed from 147 to 143 gate months based on a 2.5 year undocumented “S” status. Without his knowledge, the Host Aviation Resource Management (HARM) office published an aeronautical order on 14 December 2011 placing him on ASC 2K effective 29 September 2011, which stopped his OFDA accrual and he reverted back to 143 gate months. When he out-processed Kadena Air Base, Japan, he was told that he had met his 18-year gate and was given his record which showed 146 gate months. After a permanent change of station to the Naval War College, his record reflected he had met his 18-year gate and had 147 gate months. However, after an audit in September 2014 and revelation of an undocumented “s” status, his OFDA was changed to 143 gate months. Assignment decisions by the Air Force Personnel Center were based on his record reflecting 147 gate months and the fact that he had enough OFDA to meet the 18-year gate. He can now never meet the 18-year gate and his Aviator Career Incentive Pay (ACIP) will terminate after 22 years. This change is unjust and he respectfully requests his OFDA be amended from 143 to 147. The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. STATEMENT OF FACTS: The applicant is active duty serving in the grade of lieutenant colonel. Effective 26 February 2014, Aeronautical Order (AO) 0770 was published noting the applicant’s OFDA as 147. On 3 October 2014, AO 0770 was revoked. The revocation order stated the original order was published in error and that the applicant had not met the 18 years of aviation with the minimum number of months OFDA. The revocation order further noted the applicant had returned from a non-flying deployment and did not fly within the 3 month period from the date of return to active flying status. As a result, he lost four months of OFDA leaving him with 143 months of OFDA at the 18th year of service. The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are contained in the memorandum prepared by the Air Force office of primary responsibility (OPR), which is attached at Exhibit C. AIR FORCE EVALUATION: HQ USAF/A3OM recommends the applicant’s record should be corrected to reflect one OFDA creditable month for 2012. He has presented sufficient evidence of an error or injustice that prevented him from meeting established requirements for continuous entitlement to ACIP. Only partial approval is recommended because the applicant only needs 144 months of OFDA. If the board approves this case, the HARM office will be directed to update his aviation service record to reflect OFDA credit for 2012. According to AFI 11-401, Aviation Management, aircrew members require 15 days of active flying status in a month to receive OFDA credit for that month. The Aviation Career Improvement Act (ACIA) of 1989 authorized the Secretary of the Air Force (SECAF) to waive OFDA requirements based on the needs of the service, for rated officers unable to meet flying gate requirements due to reasons beyond their control. According to AFI 36-2110, Assignments, it is Air Force policy that as many rated officers as possible complete at least 10 years (120 months) of operational flying by the 18th year of aviation service; however not all officers will fulfill the requirements to receive ACIP through 25 years of aviation service. In accordance with AFI 11-401, by direction of the SECAF, third gate waivers, for individuals to receive ACIP through 25 years of aviation service when OFDA requirements have not been met, will not be considered. The applicant was selected for an inactive flying assignment based on incorrect information given to him by the HARM office. The applicant and AFPC believed that he had already met the requirement to receive continuous ACIP until his 25th year of aviation service, and this error influenced career decisions for follow-on assignments. The complete HQ USAF/A3OM 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 30 March 2015 for review and comment within 30 days (Exhibit D). As of this date, no response has been received by this office. THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing law or regulations. 2. The application was timely filed. 3. Sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of error or injustice which warrants partial relief. We took notice of the applicant's complete submission in judging the merits of the case and we believe the applicant has presented sufficient evidence that he was led to believe he had already met the requirement to receive continuous ACIP until his 25th year of aviation service. We noted the applicant requests for 147 gate months, however, we agree with the opinion and recommendation of the Air Force office of primary responsibility that the applicant only needs 144 months of OFDA to meet continuous entitlement to ACIP. Therefore, we recommend that the applicant’s record be corrected as indicated below. THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT: The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air Force relating to APPLICANT be corrected to show that his aviation service record reflected 144 months of Operational Flying Duty Accumulator (OFDA) for calendar year 2012; entitling him to Aviation Career Incentive Pay (ACIP) through his 25th year of service. The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2014-05036 in Executive Session on 20 August 2015 under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: The following documentary evidence pertaining to AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2014-05036 was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 12 Dec 14, w/atchs. Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. Exhibit C. Memorandum, USAF/A3OM, dated 18 Feb 15. Exhibit D. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 30 Mar 15. 1 2