Lieutenant Colonel Weatherford was the pilot of a F-84D Thunderjet fighter with the 311th Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 58th Fighter-Bomber Group. On 11 August 1952, while on a combat mission, as his aircraft pulled out of a dive its wing folded over and the plane 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.

For his leadership and valor, Lieutenant Colonel Weatherford was awarded the Distinguished Flying Cross with Oak Leaf Cluster, the Air Medal with 15 Oak Leaf Clusters, 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.