After shakedown training out of Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, and the usual post-shakedown availability, "Wilkinson" departed her home port, Newport, Rhode Island, on 21 February 1955—with Rear Admiral Arleigh Burke, Commander, Destroyer Force, Atlantic Fleet (and soon to become the Chief of Naval Operations) and members of his staff embarked—and carried Admiral Burke on an inspection tour that included visits to San Juan, Puerto Rico; St. Thomas, Virgin Islands; Guantanamo Bay and Havana, Cuba; and Key West, Fla. Upon her return, the destroyer leader became flagship for Commander, Destroyer Flotilla (DesFlot) 2, part of the Atlantic Fleet's antisubmarine forces. For three months thereafter, the ship conducted antisubmarine warfare (ASW) exercises.