Second Lieutenant Baas was the pilot of a F-51D Mustang night fighter with the 40th Fighter-Interceptor Squadron, 35th Fighter-Interceptor Group. On 15 July 1950, while on a combat mission, his aircraft struck the ground as he made a rocket pass 14 miles northeast of Taejon, Korea.

Baas was awarded the Purple Heart, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Korean War Service Medal.