On 1 August 1978 "Elliot" shifted from the operational command of Destroyer Squadron Nine to Destroyer Squadron 31 (DesRon 31). "Elliot" departed for her first deployment, a seven-month Western Pacific tour, on 21 February 1979 as flagship of DesRon 31 in company with the aircraft carrier . On 31 March, "Elliot" departed Subic Bay, Philippines with "Ranger", for operations in the Indian Ocean. Less than a week later, "Elliot" was transiting the Strait of Malacca in lead of "Ranger" when the carrier was involved in a collision with the oil tanker M/V "Fortune" resulting in the carrier having to return to Subic Bay for repairs. "Elliot" arrived in Diego Garcia on 12 April. "Elliot" then joined a battle group centered around and participated in operations in the Gulf of Aden to maintain a U.S. military presence in the area. "Elliot" returned to Subic Bay on 15 June. "Elliot" was awarded the Navy Expeditionary Medal for Indian Ocean contingency operations. "Elliot" arrived back at her homeport from her first deployment on 9 September 1979. Also notable on this deployment was "Elliot" tailing Soviet carrier "Minsk" for five days of observation of operations.