First Lieutenant Lombardo was the pilot of a F-84G Thunderjet fighter with the 311th Fighter-Bomber Squadron, 58th Fighter-Bomber Group. On 16 June 1953, he was flying his 29th mission, conducting armed reconnaissance over North Korea. During a bomb run, his aircraft suddenly dove, crashed on the ground and exploded. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Lombardo 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.