It's a club. Often it depends on who nominated you. Get nominated by someone not in the club and you'll be lucky to get recognised unless you're from an outback town. Get nominated by someone in the club, (perhaps a Chairman with an AO) and you're far more likely to get recognised.
I've watched with interest over a number of years of who within the cadet services receive OA recognition- they're recognised under the civilian nomination system. As a result of a number of names that I saw who received recognition, as well as those who did not despite being nominated multiple times and with achievements that dwarf almost every other member of the AAFC in the last few decades, I subsequently lost faith in the system long ago.