Captain Nelson was a pilot of a F4U-4 Corsair fighter with the Marine Fighter Squadron 212, Marine Air Group 12, 1st Marine Air Wing. On 4 June 1954, he was on a Fairchild C-119 Flying Boxcar, when it crashed off the coast of South Korea.

Nelson was awarded the Combat Action Ribbon, 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.