DEPARTMENT OF THE NAVY 

BOARD FOR CORRECTION OF NAVAL RECORDS 
701 S. COURTHOUSE ROAD, SUITE 1001 
ARLINGTON, VA 22204-2490 

DocketNo. 7774-17 
APR O2 2018 

Dear , 

This is in reference to your application for correction ofyour naval record pursuant to the 
provisions of 10 USC 1552. 

A three-member panel ofthe Board for Correction ofNaval Records, sitting in executive session, 
considered your application on 15 March 2018. The names and votes ofthe members ofthe 
panel will be furnished upon request. Your allegations oferror and injustice were reviewed in 
accordance with administrative regulatiOns and procedures applicable to the proceedings ofthis 
Board. Documentary material considered by the Board consisted of your application, together 
with all material submitted in support thereof, relevant portions of your naval record and 
applicable statutes, regulations and policies. 

A review ofyour record.shows you entered active duty with the Navy in February 1994 and 
retired on 28 February 2010. On 1March2010, you were rated by the Department of Veterans 
Affairs (VA) for right shoulder degeneration, right knee bursitis, left ankle degenerative joint 
disease, and lumbosacral strain. As a result, you filed for Combat Related Special Compensation 
(CRSC) based on your VA ratings asserting that they resulted from injuries sustained onboard 
in 2002 while conducting flight operations. On 23 August 2016, 
the CRSC Board denied your request for CRSC based on lack ofevidence your disability 
conditions were the result of a specific combat-related event. 

The Board carefully considered your arguments that you deserve CRSC based on disabilities 
incurred as a result ofyour injuries onboard . Unfortunately, the 
Board disagreed with your rationale for relief. The Department ofDefense (DOD) guidelines 
allows for a determination ofa combat-related disability, for CRSC purposes, ifthey are incurred 
as a direct result ofarmed conflict, while engaged in hazardous service, in the performance of 
duty under conditions simulating war, orthrough an instrumentality ofwar. In your case, you 
are alleging your disabilities were incurred as a direct result of armed conflict based on your 
assertion that you were injured during night-time flight operations onboard 

Based on your description ofthe circumstances of your injuries, the Board 
determined you do not meet the criteria for CRSC. Specifically, the Board found that the injuries 
tha:f led to your disabilities were incurred while participating in combat operations in which you 
were not engaged with a "hostile or belligerent nation, faction, force, or terrorists." The Board 
DOD CRSC guidelines. inthewhich, by itself, does not qualify for CRSC as stated 
concluded that you were injured while supporting combat operations onboatd 
Accordingly, the Board was unable to find an error or injustice warranting a correction to your 
record and denied your application. 

It is regretted that the circumstances ofyour case are such that favorable action cannot be taken 
at this time. You are entitled to have the Board reconsider its decision upon the submission of 
new and material evidence. New evidence is evidence not previously considered by the Board. 
In this regard, it is important to keep in mind that a presumption ofregularity attaches to all 
official records. Consequently, when applying for a correction ofan official naval record, the 
burden is on the applicant to demonstrate the existence of probable material error or injustice. 

Sincerely, 


Executive Director