The destroyer departed on her next Far East cruise on 12 November 1963, when she got underway in company with" Hornet" and . Arriving in Japan on 22 November, the warship received services from "Dixie", before commencing a 7th Fleet "active environment" transit exercise with" Hornet" in the Sea of Japan. On 4 January 1964, the task force provoked the expected reconnaissance response from Soviet forces out of Vladivostok - numerous overflights by Tu-16 "Badger" aircraft and the appearance of a . Aside from a short excursion to investigate a surfaced Soviet , "Carpenter" screened "Hornet" until the task group steamed to Kobe on 10 January. In addition to plane-guard services and ASW training conducted that spring, the destroyer also carried out three Formosa Strait patrols. She returned to Pearl Harbor in late April to begin preparations for a fleet rehabilitation and modernization conversion.