Private First Class Ternes was a member of the 71st Signal Service Battalion, U.S. Army. On 30 June 1950, he was a passenger in a C-54D Skymaster transport from the 22nd Troop Carrier Squadron, 374th Troop Carrier Wing. While on the ground at Suwon, Korea, the aircraft was destroyed by a North Korean bombing strike. All 23 on board were killed.

Ternes was awarded 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.