RECORD OF PROCEEDINGS AIR FORCE BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF MILITARY RECORDS IN THE MATTER OF: DOCKET NUMBER: BC-2014-02993 COUNSEL: NONE HEARING DESIRED: NO APPLICANT REQUESTS THAT: His DD Form 214, Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge, be corrected to reflect the award of the following Air Force Medals and/or Ribbons: a. Air Force Outstanding Unit Award(AFOUA) with Valor device. b. Vietnam Service Medal(VSM) with two Bronze Service Stars. (Administratively Corrected) c. Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross(RVNGC) with Palm Unit Citation. (Administratively Corrected) d. Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross(RVNGC) with Gold Star. e. Air Force Commendation Medal(AFCM). APPLICANT CONTENDS THAT: His records do not accurately reflect his awarded Air Force Medal and/or Ribbons. He only recently found out from another service member that his records were in error. The applicant’s complete submission, with attachments, is at Exhibit A. STATEMENT OF FACTS: The applicant initially entered the Regular Air Force on 18 Jan 65. On 25 Nov 68, the applicant was furnished an Honorable discharge, and was credited with 3 years, 10 months, and 8 days of active service. The applicant’s DD Form 214 reflects the following Air Force Medals and/or Ribbons: - National Defense Service Medal - Vietnam Service Medal with one Bronze Service Star - Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal - Air Force Good Conduct Medal - Air Force Outstanding Unit Award - Small Arms Expert Marksmanship Ribbon 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: AFPC/DPSID recommends denial of the AFCM, AFOUA with Valor, and the RVNGC with Gold Star indicating there is no evidence of an error or an injustice. The AFCM is awarded to members of the Armed Forces of the United States, below the grade of Colonel and foreign military personnel, who, while serving in any capacity with the Department of the Air Force after 28 Mar 58, distinguish themselves by outstanding achievement or meritorious service. The AFOUA is awarded by the Secretary of the Air Force to units that have distinguished themselves by exceptionally meritorious service or outstanding achievement that clearly sets the unit above and apart from similar units. All assigned or attached people who served with a unit during a period for which a unit award was awarded are authorized the appropriate ribbon if they directly contributed to the mission and accomplishment of the unit. A bronze valor device may be worn on the service ribbon when the award of the AFOUA is made to a unit for combat or direct combat support. The RVNGC with Palm was awarded by the Republic of Vietnam by certain units of the Armed Forces of the United States for valorous combat achievement during the Vietnam Conflict, inclusive from 1 Mar 61 to 28 Mar 73. There are no authorized devices. After a thorough review of the applicant’s official military personnel record, they were unable to verify award of the AFCM, AFOUA with Valor, or the RVNGC with Gold Star. They did determine that the following Air Force Medals and/or Ribbons should have been awarded: - Presidential Unit Citation with one Bronze Oak Leaf Cluster - Vietnam Service Medal with four Bronze Service Stars - Republic of Vietnam Gallantry Cross with Palm Upon final Board decision, administrative correction of the applicant’s official military personnel record will be completed by AFPC/DPSOR. A complete copy of the AFPC/DPSID evaluation is at Exhibit C. APPLICANT'S REVIEW OF AIR FORCE EVALUATION: In response to the Air Force Advisory, the applicant provided a copy of an AFCM Special Order G-3145, dated 16 Oct 68. He hopes this documentation will prove he should be awarded the AFCM. THE BOARD CONCLUDES THAT: 1. The applicant has exhausted all remedies provided by existing law or regulations. 2. The application was not timely filed. While the applicant claims a date of discovery of less than three years ago, in our view, the reasonable date of discovery of the alleged error or injustice was more than three years ago and the application is therefore untimely; however, it is in the interest of justice to waive the failure to timely file. 3. Insufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an error or injustice related to the award of the AFOUA with Valor or the RVNGC with Gold Star. 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 that relief beyond that already granted administratively is not warranted. Therefore, in the absence of evidence to the contrary, we find no basis to recommend granting the requested relief. 4. Sufficient relevant evidence has been presented to demonstrate the existence of an injustice related to the award of the AFCM. After a thorough review of the evidence of record and the applicant’s complete submission, to include his rebuttal comments, we believe the applicant is the victim of an error. While we note the comments of AFPC/DPSID indicating that relief should be denied because the applicant’s record contain no documentation substantiating the applicant’s contention, we believe a preponderance of the evidence substantiates that corrective action is warranted. In this respect, we note the applicant provided in his rebuttal copies of Special Order G- 3145, dated 16 Oct 68 validating his award of the AFCM. 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 his DD Form 214, Armed Forces of the United States Report of Transfer or Discharge, issued on 25 November 1968 be amended to include the award of the Air Force Commendation Medal. The following members of the Board considered AFBCMR Docket Number BC-2014-02993 in Executive Session on 2 Jun 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-2014-02993 was considered: Exhibit A. DD Form 149, dated 21 Jul 14, w/atchs. Exhibit B. Applicant's Master Personnel Records. Exhibit C. Memorandum, AFPC/DPSID, dated 14 Oct 14. Exhibit D. Letter, SAF/MRBR, dated 31 Oct 15. Exhibit E. Letter, Applicant, dated 7 Feb 15.