First Lieutenant Potter was a member of the 7th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 49th Fighter Bomber Group. On 17 July 1953, while on a bomb run, his aircraft crashed. He was listed as Missing in Action. He was presumed dead on 13 July 1954. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Potter 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.