First Lieutenant Alkire was the pilot of a F-84E Thunderjet fighter with the 7th Fighter Bomber Squadron, 49th Fighter Bomber Group. On 9 September 1952, while on a combat mission, his flight of four F-86s was attacked by four MiG-15s. His aircraft was hit and crashed. He was listed as Missing in Action and was presumed dead on 31 December 1953. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Alkire 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.