The Board has determined that the evidence is in equipoise as to whether the Veteran's current bilateral hearing loss is related to his time as a Marine jet mechanic, and grants service connection for this condition.
The deciding factor: The Veteran testified that his current bilateral hearing loss is attributable to noise exposure he experienced on the flight line as a jet mechanic during service. The Board found that while there were no audiometric measurements in his service treatment records (STRs), the Veteran's MOS confirmed he served as an Aircraft Hydraulic Mechanic, and thus likely did experience acoustic trauma. Despite this, the VA examiner could not provide a definitive opinion without resorting to speculation.
- Claimed conditions
- bilateral hearing loss, residuals of a right eye injury, bilateral shoulder disability, bilateral hand disability, cervical spine disability, lumbar spine disability
- How they argued it
- Direct service connection
- Exposure basis
- None
- Rating assigned
- 0%
- Decision date
- June 17, 2014
- Citation
- 1427444
This is a plain-language summary generated by AI from a public Board of Veterans’ Appeals decision. It can contain errors — always verify against the original. Look up the original decision on VA.gov (opens in a new tab) using citation 1427444.
What this means for you
A grant means the Board agreed the veteran was entitled to the benefit. Decisions like this show the kind of evidence and arguments that tend to succeed for claims like it.
What you can do next
Related decisions
Other Board decisions on a similar condition or argued the same way.
- Dismissed
The Veteran's appeal for service connection of bilateral hearing loss and a ruptured right ear drum was dismissed due to the death of the Veteran.
- Denied
The Board found that the Veteran's bilateral hearing loss was noted upon entry into active duty service and did not increase in severity during service. Therefore, it denied his claim for service connection.
- Denied
The Board denied the Veteran's claims for service connection for a bilateral shoulder disability and increased ratings for her bilateral knee disabilities, finding no evidence of in-service injury or disease related to these conditions.
- Remanded (sent back)
The Board has remanded the claims for bilateral hearing loss, migraine headaches, and PTSD due to additional development of records and examination.
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