On 1 January 1944, "Indiana" was assigned to TG 37.2, and on 16 January she took part in gunnery practice with "South Dakota" and the destroyers , , and . The five ships, joined by "North Carolina", "Washington", and three more destroyers, then got underway on 18 January for the next major amphibious operation the Pacific, the Marshall Islands campaign. While en route, the ships conducted training with their anti-aircraft batteries. They rendezvoused with the carriers and "Monterey" at sea, and after arriving in Funafuti on 20 January the unit was redesignated as TG 58.1. By this time, the group had grown to include the carriers "Enterprise", "Yorktown", "Belleau Wood", and several more cruisers and destroyers. Further training took place from 25 to 28 January, including more anti-aircraft practice; "Indiana" also served as a target for simulated air attacks from the carrier aircraft. During the operation, "Indiana" served as the flagship of Battleship Division 8 (BatDiv), commanded by Rear Admiral Glenn B. Davis.