Carpenter began his flying career in the United States Navy during World War II, as a torpedo bomber pilot in a Grumman Avenger PBS. He received the Distinguished Flying Cross, before retirement as a Lieutenant Commander in 1947. Carpenter worked for many years as a Civil Engineer with the Kansas Department of Transportation. He directed the aviation Explorer Post 8, in Topeka, Kansas, where he purchased aircraft, sponsored air shows, and offered flight training programs. He directed educational tours at the Topeka Combat Air Museum. To celebrate the United States’ 200th anniversary, Carpenter and Post 8 flew over 11,000 miles around the nation’s border, beginning and ending in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, on July 4th, 1976. For this feat he was honored by the President of the United States, other state and federal legislative bodies, and the National Bicentennial Commission.