She was laid down on 9 March 1942, at Los Angeles Shipbuilding and Dry Dock Company, San Pedro, California, as Heavy-hull Repair Ship ARH-1, and launched on 3 April 1943.

After brief shakedown and fitting out, the repair ship arrived Pearl Harbor on 6 July 1944 on the first leg of her journey to the Pacific battle area.

Two months later she arrived Ulithi, where she was to spend the greater part of the war, performing the task of repairing U.S. Navy's ships.

Jason returned to San Diego, California, on 13 February 1955 and commenced repair services off the West Coast of the United States.

Her next Far Eastern tour began January 1956, and she operated in Japan, Okinawa, and Formosa before returning to San Diego, in late October.

Following her return to San Diego, on 7 March 1961, Jason operated along the West Coast of the United States providing repair services through 1962.

After operations in Japan and at Okinawa, she reached Subic Bay 6 March and served ships of the 7th Fleet until heading home on 31 August.

The repair ship operated in ports of southern California until entering the Naval Shipyard at Bremerton, Washington, for overhaul on 4 March 1966.

In October 1980, while home ported in San Diego, the Jason and her crew deployed for WestPac and Indian Ocean cruise in support of troops for the Iran hostage crisis.

Jason returned to San Diego soon after, with a brief stop in Fremantle, Western Australia, on 27 February 1981 with four-day R&R in the city of Perth, and a resupply at Pearl Harbor.

Two weeks into the Air War, the Jason moved into the Persian Gulf, mooring pierside along with other US and Coalition ships in Manama, Bahrain, in support of Operation Desert Storm.

The Jason played a vital role in the emergency repair of the two warships that suffered mine damage in the Persian Gulf, the Tripoli and the Princeton.

Jason earned three campaign stars for Vietnam War service: Captain Edward F. Ney Memorial Award – (1974, 3rd place) Jason was decommissioned, struck from the Naval Vessel Register on 24 June 1995, and transferred to the Maritime Administration for lay up in the National Defense Reserve Fleet, Suisun Bay, Benicia, California.