Captain Simpson was the pilot of a F4U-4B Corsair fighter with Headquarters Squadron, 33rd Marine Air Group aboard the aircraft carrier USS Sicily (CVE-118). On 16 September 1950, while on a combat mission of attacking enemy tanks near Inchon, Korea, his aircraft struck the ground killing him.

Simpson was awarded the Purple Heart, the Combat Action Ribbon, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal and the Republic of Korea War Service Medal.