First Lieutenant Harding was the pilot of a B-26B Invader bomber with the 13th Bomber Squadron, 3rd Bomber Wing. On 28 June 1950, while on a combat mission in bad weather, his aircraft crashed into the sea near Ashiya Air Base.

Harding 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.