Tigs
not sure how many years 20-odd is, but I am sure that VLs were for people completing 22 years+. If you just fell the wrong side you would not have received one.
IMHO only some of them were worth the paper they were written on. If you had a boss that knew you and knew of your past, then he would be able to write something meaningful. If you had a new boss, or had not been long in your last post, the system expected that boss to cobble something together from the briefest of summaries provided from Handbrake House.
While nice to get something, I always questioned the value of certain VLs, thinking they should have come from PMA rathr than being drafted by flt cdr because they had access to all an individual's records and had a comprehensive picture of service. Might suggest it to ACOS Manning now they have so much spare capacity.