Technical Sergeant White was a member of Headquarters Squadron, 1st Marine Air Wing. On 24 September 1950, he was the pilot of a F4U-4 Corsair fighter being ferried from Okinawa to Itami Air Base, Japan. His aircraft collided mid-air with another aircraft.

White was awarded 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.