Departing Newport on 1 June, "Benham" and the rest of Destroyer Division 242 (DesDiv 242) steamed south, passed through the Panama Canal, and crossed the Pacific Ocean to Japan. There, she spent several months training and patrolling with the 7th Fleet. One such patrol took place in the South China Sea after two Chinese communist Lavochkin La. 7 fighters shot down an Air Cathay passenger airplane in late July, killing half of the 18 passengers on board. On 25 July, while "Benham" searched for survivors, two Chinese fighters attacked nearby American fighters and were promptly splashed for their troubles. The destroyer also conducted antisubmarine training exercises with friendly submarines off Okinawa. Following a two-week yard period at Sasebo, Japan, the destroyer sailed for home in October. She visited Hong Kong and Singapore first, then sailed into the Indian Ocean before stopping at Ceylon and Aden. Other port visits included Naples, Barcelona, Gibraltar, and the Azores before she finally arrived in Newport on 18 December.