RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2015-00866 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: a. Her DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, be corrected to reflect she was discharged under the FY15 Voluntary Separation Pay (VSP) Program. b. If necessary, she be reinstated to active duty for 12 days to authorize separation pay under the FY15 VSP. c. DFAS be directed to authorized separation pay. APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: On 11 Jun 14, after reading Personnel Service Delivery Memorandum (PSDM) 14-44 and receiving counsel from her servicing Military Personnel Flight (MPF) she applied for the FY15 VSP Program with a requested date of separation of 12 Jan 15. This date is significant as it marks six years plus one day of commissioned service in the Air Force which according to the above mentioned PSDM made her eligible for separation pay. Instead of processing her application, as directed by the PSDM, her commander’s executive officer, personally called her and advised her to either withdraw her application for VSP or backdate the separation date to reflect 31 Dec 14. By backdating it, she would be ineligible to receive separation pay as she would miss the six year mark by 12 days. She was further advised that she was not eligible for the FY15 VSP. The executive officer followed up the phone conversation with an E- mail. PSDM 14-44, provides clear guidance that “No commander, supervisor, agency, unit, or organization [was] authorized to delay [or] divert … applications under this program”. Her commander’s executive officer violated this guidance by contacting her directly about her application and telling her she was not eligible for the program. Based solely on this conversation and out of fear that a denied separation application would reflect poorly at a Force Shaping Board, she withdrew her request for VSP and met the FSB. She was not retained. In support of her request, the applicant has provided a personal memorandum detailing what took place, a copy of her VSP application, copies of E-mails regarding the FSB process, copies of E-mails regarding the VSP application, excerpts of PSDM 14- 44, copy of a FOIA request and memo from a co-worker. The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. STATEMENT OF FACTS: The applicant initially entered the Regular Air Force on 11 Jan 09. On 31 Dec 14, the applicant was furnished an Honorable discharge, and was credited with 5 years, 11 months, and 20 days of active service. The applicant’s DD Form 214 reflects a narrative reason for separation as “Reduction in Force”. The remaining relevant facts pertaining to this application are described in the memorandum prepared by the Air Force office of primary responsibility (OPR), which is included at Exhibit C. AIR FORCE EVALUATION: AFPC/DPSOR-SEP recommends approval. The applicant contends that she initially applied for VSP via the Personnel Processing Application (PPA) on 11 Jun 14. On that application, she requested a Date of Separation (DOS) of 12 Jan 15, which would have given her 6 years and 1 day of Total Active Federal Military Service (TAFMS), thus making her eligible for VSP. She claims that on 16 Jun 14, she was informed by her commander’s executive officer that she needed to change her DOS to the mandatory separation date of 31 Dec 14 and because of that date, she was not eligible to apply for VSP and would not be approved by AFPC if she kept the original DOS request. She contends that as a result of this information and the fear of having a disapproved separation application on her record, she withdrew her request and decided to take her chances with the Force Shaping Board. The applicant supplied as evidence an e-mail from the executive officer dated 16 Jun 14, where the executive officer did inform her that she was not eligible to apply for VSP and that she needed to change her DOS request back to the mandatory separation date of 31 Dec 14. The executive officer used PSDM 14-44 as her guidance to inform the applicant, however, she was providing an incorrect interpretation of the guidance. PSDM 14- 44, page 3 states that “officers who reach more than 6 years of service 1 Jan through 30 Apr 15 may request a separation date equal to the date they complete 6 years and 1 day of service to qualify for VSP”. The applicant was indeed eligible to apply for VSP as long as she requested a Date of Separation (DOS) that would have taken her to 6 years and 1 day of Total Active Federal Military Service. A copy of her PPA is evidence that she applied for VSP separation utilizing the criteria in the PSDM but was thwarted in her attempt to receive her commander’s recommendation. It is our opinion that an error or injustice occurred in this case. Although we cannot guarantee that the applicant would have been approved, we must contend that in all likelihood, if her application had been received by this office and she met the criteria as directed in the PSDM, her application would have been approved. A complete copy of the AFPC/DPSOR-SEP 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 9 Sep 15 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 an error or injustice. We took notice of the applicant's complete submission in judging the merits of the case and 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 the applicant has been the victim of an error or injustice. Therefore, we recommend the applicant's records be corrected as indicated below. THE BOARD RECOMMENDS THAT: The pertinent military records of the Department of the Air Force relating to the APPLICANT be corrected to reflect that her active duty date of separation be corrected from 31 December 2014 to 12 January 15 under the Voluntary Separation Pay Program. As a result, the separation program designator code corrected to reflect “MCN” and the corresponding narrative reason for separation corrected to reflect “Force Shaping-VSP”. Furthermore, DFAS is directed to initiate VSP payment procedures upon receipt of the amended separation orders. The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2015-00866 in Executive Session on 17 Nov 15 under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: , Panel Chair , Member , Member All members voted to correct the records as recommended. The following documentary evidence pertaining to AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2015-00866 was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 23 Feb 15, w/atchs. Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. Exhibit C. Memorandum, AFPC/DPSOR-SEP, dated 7 May 15. Exhibit D. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 9 Sep 15.