Technical Sergeant Radford was the pilot of a F4U-5 Corsair fighter with Marine Attack Squadron 212, Marine Air Group 12, First Marine Air Wing aboard the aircraft carrier USS Bataan (CVL-29). On 3 December 1950, while on a combat mission of strafing enemy positions five miles west of Koto-ri, Korea, his aircraft struck the side of a hill.

Radford was awarded the Purple Heart, 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.