Late in 1964, American involvement in the conflict in South Vietnam increased dramatically. As a consequence, "Arikara" began to visit the Vietnamese coast more frequently. By the fall of 1966, the tug found herself calling at such places as Vũng Tàu and Da Nang to provide towing and other support services for Navy units engaged in fighting communist insurgency and North Vietnamese aggression in South Vietnam. Her deployments to Asian waters along with the concomitant service in Vietnam continued into 1970.