Springer sailed for San Diego on 3 December to conduct sea trials and shakedown training.

After availability, she departed Mare Island for Hawaii on 8 January 1945 and arrived at Pearl Harbor the following week.

Springer rode out several heavy storms and was driven down many times by enemy aircraft, but she finally spotted two Japanese warships on 11 March.

The ships were at a range of 22,000 yards (20 km), steaming at 17 knots (31 km/h), so the submarine surfaced to give chase.

Later in the month, the submarine made radar contact with three ships, and she tracked the largest for three hours.

Springer, Trepang (SS-412), and Raton (SS-270) sailed on 20 April for the Yellow Sea where they were to operate as a wolfpack.

At 05:15, Springer sighted two ships hugging the coastline, but she found it impossible to close nearer than 6,500 yards (5,900 m).

The target went dead in the water; and, as the crew was abandoning ship, Springer fired another torpedo.

Two planes and two patrol craft approached, so Springer went deep and cleared the area, leaving Japan's Submarine Chaser No.

Just as Springer reached a favorable firing position around noon, the fog suddenly lifted and left her exposed to a destroyer escort crossing her stern.

The next night, she fired a spread of torpedoes at a ship making an antisubmarine sweep and sank the Japanese Coast Defense Vessel No.

In April 1960, Springer was moved from Mare Island to the San Francisco Naval Shipyard to be modernized in preparation for her transfer to the Republic of Chile.