Loving entered military service in March 1942 as an aviation cadet and graduated from flying school in 1943 with a commission as second lieutenant and his pilot wings.

Loving returned to the United States in October 1944 and served as a P-47 fighter pilot instructor and base armament officer at Millville Army Air Field, New Jersey.

In January 1949 Loving became operations officer at the Air Force Reserve Training Center, Byrd Field, Richmond, Virginia.

Shortly after the beginning of the Korean War, Loving volunteered for combat duty and in July 1950 went to Taegu, Korea, where he served 13 months, initially as base operations officer, and then as commander of the 9th Fighter-Bomber Squadron.

He was appointed Joint Chiefs of Staff Representative for Mutual and Balanced Force Reduction in January 1975 and served as the senior military member of the U.S. delegation to the international conference in Vienna on MBFR.

During the period August 1975 to June 1977, he served as commander, Sixth Allied Tactical Air Force, with headquarters at Izmir, Turkey.