Herb Ellerbock, of Rutherglen, and Wodonga's Jim Hislop, said their group, Australian Defence Force Retirees Association, was evaluating options for legal action following the release of a Commonwealth ombusman report on Thursday.

The pair has been lobbying for years against what they call an unjust superannuation system that denied former personnel their full benefits.

Ombudsman Michael Manthorpe found many Defence Force members were given misleading guidance about the Defence Force Retirement and Death Benefit scheme and recommended an apology, but not compensation.

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A statement from Defence department secretary Greg Moriarty and Defence Force chief Angus Campbell, included in the report, said it was incumbent on Defence to ensure the accuracy of information given to members.

"We apologise for providing incorrect advice to some DFRDB members and for the confusion and emotional impact that it may have caused," they said.

Mr Ellerbock said although this provided some vindication, the overall report was disappointing.

"The findings of the report are as expected and a pre-destined outcome of the terms of reference," he said.

"The 'apology' will be seen by many of our members as a slap in the face."

Mr Manthorpe's investigation considered only the issue of commutation, where personnel commuted a part of their pension into a lump sum, and not indexation arrangements, which the North East campaigners felt were flawed.

"The greatest disappointment is the failure of the report to adequately address indexation," Mr Ellerbock said.

"The report has fallen well short on stating our concerns with policy and gives the government the scope to once again avoid addressing those concerns in any public 'clarification' of its policy position."