Corporal Tyler was a member of Company I, 3rd Battalion, 15th Infantry Regiment, 3rd Infantry Division. He was seriously wounded by the enemy in Korea on 19 December 1950 and died of those wounds the following day. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Tyler was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Infantryman's Badge, 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.