RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS
AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS

IN THE MATTER OF:			DOCKET NUMBER:  BC-2015-03082

  						COUNSEL:  NONE

						HEARING DESIRED:  NO

APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT:

Her date of entry into the Air Force Reserve be corrected to 8 Apr 15, the day following his separation from Active Duty, in order to eliminate the break in service between her Active Duty separation and entry into the Air Force Reserve, and her Date of Rank (DOR) be corrected back to 1 May 13.

APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT:

She initiated the scroll process to gain a Reserve Officer Commission in Dec 2014, the same month she received approval to separate from Active Duty (AD); however, her 18 May 15 commissioning resulted in a break in service between AD and the Air Force Reserve.  

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

STATEMENT OF FACTS:

The applicant initially entered the Regular Air Force on 28 May 03.

On 26 Nov 14, the applicant applied for separation and requested that she be given an Air Force Reserve commission.  She was approved initially for 18 Jan 15; however, on 29 Dec 14, she requested a separation date of 7 Apr 15 which was approved.  

On 7 Apr 15, the applicant was furnished an honorable discharge, and was credited with 11 years, 10 months, and 10 days of active service.

On 18 May 15, the applicant was appointed in the Air Force Reserve.  

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:

ARPC/DPAR recommends granting the applicant’s request to reflect no break in service, indicating there is evidence of an error or injustice.  The break in service was no fault of the applicant.  However, instead of correcting her date of entry into the Reserve to 8 Apr 15, the day following separation from AD, ARPC/DPAR recommends extending the applicant on active duty until 17 May 15 to include correcting her date of rank and pay date.  Current policies do not allow for backdating oaths; however, SAF/GCM and the AFBCMR has determined that the AFBCMR has the authority to adjust the Date of Separation (DOS) for these officers to prevent a break in service.  OSD General Counsel determined the appointment date is the date the Secretary of Defense approves the appointment or the date the oath was administered, whichever is later.  In the case of the applicant, she was granted appointment in accordance with the Office of Secretary of Defense directive on 18 May 15.  Due to a delay in processing of Nominee Package 493, the applicant incurred a break in service between applicant’s DOS and appointment date into the Air Force Reserve.  
 
A complete copy of the ARPC/DPAR evaluation, with attachment, is at Exhibit C.

APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION:

A copy of the Air Force evaluation was forwarded to the applicant on 1 Feb 16 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.  Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice with regard to the applicant’s date of entry into the Air Force Reserve.  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 (OPR) and adopt its rationale as the basis for our conclusion the applicant has not been the victim of an error of injustice.  Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find no basis to recommend granting this portion of the applicant’s request.

4.  Notwithstanding the above, sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice.  Having carefully reviewed this application, we agree with the recommendation of the Air Force OPR and adopt the rationale expressed as the basis for our decision that the applicant has been the victim of either an error or an injustice and her records should be corrected to remove her break in service in the manner recommended by ARPC.  With respect to the applicant’s request to change her date of rank, we note that once her break in service is removed, her date of rank and other service dates will be automatically adjusted by ARPC as is customary in these cases. 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 show that she did not tender her resignation and was not discharged from all Regular Air Force appointments on 7 April 2015, but on that date, was continued on active duty until 17 May 2015, on which date she tendered her resignation, was discharged from all Regular Air Force appointments, and was released from active duty..

The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2015-03082 in Executive Session on 18 Oct 16 under the provisions of AFI 36-2603:

	Panel Chair
	Member
	Member

All members voted to correct the records as recommended.  The following documentary evidence was considered:

	Exhibit A.  DD Form 149, dated 16 Jul 15, w/atchs.
	Exhibit B.  Applicant's Master Personnel Records.
	Exhibit C.  Memorandum, ARPC/DPAR, dated 29 Dec 15, w/atch.
	Exhibit D.  Letter, AFBCMR, dated 1 Feb 16.

Pursuant to paragraph 1 of AFI 36-2603 (Title 32 Code of Federal Regulations, Part 865.1), it is certified that a quorum was present at the Board's review and deliberations, and that the foregoing is a true and complete record of the Board's proceedings in the above entitled matter.