Captain Higgins was the pilot of a F9F-2 Pantherjet fighter with Marine Fighter Squadron 115, Marine Air Group 33, 1st Marine Air Wing. On 15 January 1953, while on a combat mission, his aircraft received a direct hit by anti-aircraft fire and ditched near Sinanju, North Korea three miles north of Sok-do. His remains were not recovered. His name is inscribed on the Courts of the Missing at the Honolulu Memorial.

Higgins was awarded the Air Medal, 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.