First Lieutenant David was the pilot of a RF-51D Mustang fighter bomber with the 12th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 18th Fighter Bomber Wing. On 8 October 1950, while on a combat mission near Wonsan, North Korea, his aircraft's engine failed so he ditched the plane in Wonsan Bay. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

David was awarded the Air Medal, 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.