The tempo of operations increased on 26 February when "Benner" joined up with and for a bombardment of the North Vietnamese coast. During that day, the warship fired seven missions — including two counter-battery actions — and received 116 enemy rounds close aboard. Although the destroyer was straddled twice by fire from Hon Matt Island, her counter-battery fire managed to silence the enemy guns. Over the next week, the destroyer conducted another 36 fire missions — firing off 1,281 5-inch rounds in the process — against enemy targets. After a two-week tender availability at Sasebo, Japan, "Benner" served a short stint in the Taiwan Strait before returning to Long Beach on 12 May. She spent the remainder of the year in leave, upkeep, and local operations.