Rear Admiral Oscar C. Badger II, the commander of TU 12.5.2, hoisted his flag aboard the ship on 8 January 1945, and she departed Pearl Harbor two days later in company with the destroyer and the destroyer minelayer . The ships cruised to Eniwetok, and from there, continued on to Saipain where she joined the rest of her unit on 20 January. The unit sortied on 22 January, headed for Iwo Jima and arrived there two days later. On arrival, "Indiana", three heavy cruisers, seven destroyers, and "Gwin" shelled the island in preparation for the invasion of the island a month later. At 13:17, a Nakajima B6N torpedo bomber attacked the ships but was driven off by heavy anti-aircraft fire. "Indiana" fired a total of 200 shells from her main battery before poor visibility forced her to cease fire at 15:55. She left the area the next morning and steamed to Ulithi, arriving on 26 January. Badger then transferred to the battleship and "Indiana" occupied herself with anti-aircraft training for the rest of the month.