RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2012-04944 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO ___________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: His record be corrected to reflect award of the appropriate medals and boots on the ground for his service in Honduras and in support of Operation ELDORADO CANYON in Sicily. ___________________________________________________________________ THE APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: He believes he is entitled to the requested awards and that his DD Form 214, Certificate of Release or Discharge from Active Duty, issued in conjunction with his 2 Jan 88 separation, should be amended to reflect the appropriate awards and service. He was assigned to Palmerola AB, Honduras, during the Nicaraguan/Honduran conflict. He encountered hostile activity to include sniper fire; provided security and was at the base for more than two weeks. He was assigned to Sigonella AB, Sicily, provided security and support for the mission, and should receive the appropriate awards and service credit. In support of his appeal, the applicant provides several pictures of his service in Honduras and Sicily. The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. ________________________________________________________________ STATEMENT OF FACTS: On 3 Jan 84, the applicant enlisted in the Regular Air Force for a period of four years. On 2 Jan 88, he was honorably released from active duty in the grade of senior airman. He was credited with four years of active duty service, including one year and four days of foreign service. ________________________________________________________________ THE AIR FORCE EVALUATION: AFPC/DPSOR recommends denial for service credit in Honduras and Italy. DPSOR notes that the applicant’s personnel record does not contain documentation to support boots on the ground. In addition, DPSOR notes that in accordance with AFI 36-3202, Separation Documents, Table 4, Rule 46, they are only authorized to list the area of responsibility for members of the ANG and Reserve members ordered to AD in time of national emergency or war. The complete DPSOR evaluation is at Exhibit C. AFPC/DPSID recommends denial for awards associated with Operation ELDORADO CANYON or service in Honduras. DPSID notes that the award for participation in Operation ELDORADO CANYON was the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal (AFEM). The applicant did not serve within the area of eligibility for award of the AFEM for Operation ELDORADO CANYON. After a thorough review of the applicant's official military personnel record, they were unable to verify that he had served on temporary duty to Sigonella Naval Air Station, Italy. Additionally, Sigonella Naval Air Station is located outside of the northern limit of the area of eligibility for award of the Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal for Operation ELDORADO CANYON. As the applicant did not submit dates for his service in Honduras, other than stating the year was 1986, they could not verify awards for his service. However, they reviewed the criteria for award of the Humanitarian Service Medal operations and AFEM operations during the term of applicant's enlistment and was unable to locate an operation that included the ground area of Honduras. The AFEM was awarded for El Salvador during this period, but the area of eligibility was limited to El Salvador, and did not extend to Honduras. In addition, there is no official documentation to verify applicant served in any location awarding a campaign or service medal. They recommend disapproval for award of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO) Meritorious Service Medal (MSM). The applicant must apply to NATO as the approval authority for the NATO MSM. To grant the applicant relief would be contrary to the eligibility criteria established by DoDM 1348.33. The complete DPSID evaluation, with attachment, is at Exhibit D. ________________________________________________________________ APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF THE AIR FORCE EVALUATION: Copies of the Air Force evaluations were forwarded to the applicant on 5 Jul 13 for review and comment within 30 days. As of this date, no response has been received by this office (Exhibit E). ________________________________________________________________ THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 1. The applicant has 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 error or injustice for award of the Good Conduct Medal. We took notice of the applicant's complete submission in judging the merits of the case; however, we agree with the opinions and recommendation of the Air Force offices 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. Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find no basis to recommend granting the relief sought in this application. ________________________________________________________________ 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-2012-04944 in Executive Session on 26 Sep 13, under the provisions of AFI 36-2603: The following documentary evidence was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 20 Oct 12, w/atchs. Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. Exhibit C. Letter, AFPC/DPSOR, dated 11 Apr 13. Exhibit D. Letter, AFPC/DPSID, dated 21 Jun 13, w/atch. Exhibit E. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 5 Jul 13.