The ship left Philadelphia on 14 July, headed south, and transited the Panama Canal on 5 August and a message was sent to Commander Air Pacific (ComAirPac) – "USS Valley Forge reporting for duty".

During a voyage from the British crown colony to Tsingtao, China, orders arrived directing the task force to return home via the Atlantic with her escorting destroyers.

[6] Successive waves of A-1 Skyraiders and F4U Corsairs struck the North Korean airfield at Pyongyang bombing hangars, fuel storages, parked aircraft, and railroad marshaling yards while F9F Panthers, flying top cover, downed two Yak-9s and damaged another.

Troop concentrations, defensive positions, and supply and communications lines were repeatedly bombed by the A-1 Skyraiders and the F9F Panthers and F4U Corsairs delivered rocket and cannon fire.

Returning to San Diego for overhaul, Valley Forge arrived on the west coast on 1 December, only to have sailing orders urgently direct her back to Korea.

In the interim, between the carrier's leaving station and her planned overhaul, Chinese forces had entered the war, launching a powerful offensive which sent United Nations troops retreating back to the south.

[5] On 29 March the Valley Forge turned east and began her voyage back home again to San Diego, after spending almost ten continuous months in Korean waters, arriving at North Island on 7 April.

On 2 January 1953, Captained by Robert E. Dixon, she began the new year with strikes against Chinese supply dumps and troop billeting areas behind the stalemated front lines.

While the propeller-driven Skyraiders and Corsairs delivered tons of bombs on their targets, the jet Panthers conducted flak-suppression missions using a combination of cannon fire and rockets to knock out troublesome enemy gun sites.

This close teamwork between old and new style planes made possible regular strikes against Korea's eastern coastlines and close-support missions to aid embattled Marine or Army forces on the battle lines.

Valley Forge air groups dropped some 3,700 short tons (3,400 t) of bombs on the enemy before the ship left the Korean coast and returned to San Diego on 25 June 1953.

[5] Carrying out training operations out of Guantanamo Bay in 1957, Valley Forge accomplished an American naval "first" in October, when she embarked the ship's landing party and twin-engined HR2S-1 Mojave helicopters.

This widely publicized scientific experiment involved the launching of three of the largest balloons ever fabricated, carrying devices to measure and record primary cosmic ray emissions at an altitude of between 18 and 22 miles (29 and 35 km) above the Earth's surface.

Following a deployment in the eastern Mediterranean Valley Forge returned to Norfolk to resume local operations on 30 August, continuing antisubmarine exercises as flagship of TG Alpha through the fall of 1960.

[5] On 19 December, the carrier acted as the primary recovery ship for the Mercury-Redstone 1A uncrewed space capsule, the first flight of the Redstone rocket as part of Project Mercury.

[5] Entering the Norfolk Naval Shipyard on 6 March 1961 for overhaul and modification to an amphibious assault ship, Valley Forge was reclassified as LPH-8 on 1 July 1961 and, soon thereafter, began refresher training in the Caribbean.

With the flag of the Commander, Ready Amphibious Task Group, 7th Fleet at her main, Valley Forge closed the coast of Indochina under orders to put ashore her embarked Marines.

Putting to sea again on 27 January 1964, the newly modernized assault ship rejoined the fleet and, following local operations and training, departed Long Beach for another WestPac deployment.

Returning to Long Beach on 5 November, Valley Forge made two round-trip voyages to Okinawa carrying marines and aircraft before commencing a WestPac deployment in the South China Sea in late 1965.

With a Marine landing force embarked and flying the flag of Commander, Amphibious Squadron 3, Valley Forge conducted intensive training exercises in the Philippines while preparing for service in Vietnam.

Following pauses at Subic Bay and Chu Lai, Valley Forge arrived off the Vietnamese coast on 27 January and, two days later, launched its landing forces to take part in Operation Double Eagle.

After undergoing a major overhaul and conducting training off the west coast, Valley Forge returned to the Far East again in November 1967 and took part in Operation Fortress Ridge, launched on 21 December.

Upkeep at Đà Nẵng preceded its deployment to its new station off Đồng Hới, where it provided her necessary resupply and MedEvac support for Allied troops operating against PAVN forces.

Operation Badger Catch, commencing on 23 January 1968 and extending through 18 February, supported the Cửa Việt Base, at the mouth of the Thạch Hãn River south of the DMZ, before the ship set course for Subic Bay and much-needed maintenance.

Subsequently, returning to Vietnam, Valley Forge operated as "Helo Haven" for Marine helicopter units whose shore bases had come under attack by PAVN ground and artillery fire.

Following five months on the west coast which included local operations and an overhaul, the amphibious assault ship returned to the Far East for the last time departing Long Beach on 30 January 1969.

During late May and early June, Valley Forge received visits from Secretary of the Navy John Chafee and Vice Admiral William F. Bringle, Commander 7th Fleet.

The landing team conducted amphibious exercises with Valley Forge for 11 days and boarded the ship for a voyage to Subic Bay where they continued the training process.

It returned to Đà Nẵng on 3 September to load material for shipment to the United States and sailed that evening for U.S. Fleet Activities Yokosuka for three days of upkeep before leaving the Far East.

[12] Eight months after filming wrapped,[citation needed] and after the failure of attempts to raise funds for using the ship as a museum, she was sold on 29 October 1971 to the Nicolai Joffre Corporation, of Beverly Hills, California, for scrap.