Rochford and Repatriation Commission (Veterans' entitlements)

The Administrative Appeals Tribunal reviewed a decision concerning the Applicant's claim for a disability pension at a rate higher than the general rate under the *Veterans' Entitlements Act 1986* (Cth). The Applicant, a former member of the Royal Australian Air Force with extensive service involving Mirage and F-111 aircraft, had applied for an increase in his disability pension, asserting that all his accepted conditions had worsened and were affecting his ability to work. He had ceased employment as a manager in March 2013 due to his service-related conditions.

The central legal issue before the Tribunal was whether the Applicant met the criteria for the special rate of pension as stipulated in section 24(1)(b) and (c) of the Act. Specifically, the Tribunal had to determine if the Applicant was totally and permanently incapacitated, meaning his incapacity from war-caused injury or disease alone rendered him incapable of undertaking remunerative work for more than 8 hours per week, and if he was prevented by reason of that incapacity alone from continuing remunerative work he was undertaking, thereby suffering a loss of earnings he would not otherwise have experienced.

The Tribunal reasoned that the Applicant satisfied the requirements of section 24(1)(c) of the Act. It found that the Applicant's incapacity from war-caused injury or disease alone prevented him from continuing the remunerative work he was undertaking. Consequently, he was suffering a loss of salary or wages, or earnings on his own account, which he would not have incurred if he were free from that incapacity.

Based on this reasoning, the Tribunal varied the decision under review, ordering that the Applicant be additionally entitled to the special rate of pension pursuant to section 24 of the Act.