Missing records affect enlisted promotions

  • Published
  • By Senior Airman Brigitte N. Brantley
  • 23rd Wing Public Affairs
MOODY AIR FORCE BASE, Ga. --  Fourteen medals missing from Senior Master Sgt. Randy Scanlan's official records may have been to blame when he wasn't promoted after testing for his current rank the first time.

Although he was an aerial gunner, Airmen in many career fields erroneously believe someone else is responsible for updating their official records.

"Many hard-earned promotions are lost each promotion cycle because of incorrect records," said Scanlan, now the Air Force Personnel Center Career Assistance Advisor program functional manager. "I thought I was getting paid to fly and fight the bad guys and that someone else was inputting my records into the system. I thought it wasn't my job, but I was wrong- it was."

When AFPC staff reviewed promotion records for the most recent technical and master sergeant selection cycles, more than 1,700 enlisted performance reports and decorations were missing.

Although EPRs are worth more points than decorations, each medal can still have an impact.

"A good example is someone making rank by one point but the data verification process shows missing commendation medal information," said Staff Sgt. David Mancha, 23rd Force Support Squadron military personnel section promotions and re-enlistments NCO in charge. "If they can't get the paperwork to AFPC to show they really did earn it, they lose the three points the medal is worth and fall below the promotion cutoff score.

"We do everything we can to help the Airmen out," said Mancha.

Moody's own CAA has advice on how to make sure updating records when needed is an easy process.

"Get a copy of every EPR, every decoration, every award, feedback and score notice, and keep them in a safe place," said Master Sgt. Heather Hughes. "I have a huge binder full of stuff from my Air Force career. It's good to be prepared in case something unpredictable happens, like all my EPRs getting deleted out of the system. It'd be impossible to replace those bullets."

Airmen can easily review and update their decorations and EPRs through the Virtual Military Personnel Flight (vMPF) through the Air Force Portal at my.af.mil at any time. If Moody Airmen have questions about their awards and decorations, they can call 229-257-1633. If they have questions about their EPRs, they can call 229-257-9030.