Captain Anderson was the pilot of a F-51D Mustang night fighter with the 39th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 35th Fighter-Interceptor Group. On 21 October 1950, while on a combat mission, his aircraft received a direct hit by anti-aircraft fire and crashed into a hill between Tunchon and Kunu-ri, North Korea.

Anderson was awarded the Purple Heart, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, the Korean Presidential Unit Citation and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.