He commanded the 18th Division nicknamed "The Super Men", at Xuân Lộc, the last major battle of the Vietnam War.

In 1953, he joined up to the tenth intake of the Trần Bình Trọng course at the Vietnamese National Military Academy in Đà Lạt.

"[7] According to Dirck Halstead, by the afternoon of 21 April, Đảo knew the battle was lost and fully expected to die before it was over.

[1] After his release in May 1992, Đảo received political asylum in the United States and settled there in April 1993, where he worked as restaurant manager before retiring.

Along with Colonel Đỗ Trọng Huề, he composed the song Nhớ Mẹ (Remembering Mother), which was well known among imprisoned ARVN personnel in re-education camps.