In light of concerns over the threat posed by nuclear-powered Soviet submarines, "Carpenter" spent much of the spring of 1960 conducting ASW training and practicing aircraft carrier screening. During those evolutions, she operated with such carriers as , , and . Later in June, the warship operated in a plane guard role during Operation Cosmos — President Dwight D. Eisenhower's trip to the Far East — before conducting a six-week midshipman cruise ending on 26 July. Following a month-long tender availability alongside the destroyer tender , the destroyer spent much of September in dry dock for hull repairs.