Sergeant First Class Thompson was a member of Company B, 1st Battalion, 38th Infantry Regiment, 2nd Infantry Division. He was seriously wounded by the enemy in South Korea on 22 March 1951 and returned to duty on 25 April 1951. He was listed as Missing in Action while fighting the enemy in South Korea on 18 May 1951. He was presumed dead on 31 December 1953. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Thompson was awarded the Purple Heart with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Combat Infantryman's Badge, 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.