Wabash sailed for the West Coast on 5 January 1972, called at Rio de Janeiro, Brazil; transited the Strait of Magellan; and visited Valparaíso, Chile; Callao, Peru; and Acapulco, Mexico, before arriving at her home port, Long Beach, California, on 3 March.

After proceeding via Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, she arrived at Subic Bay, Philippine Islands, on 1 December and, assigned to Service Squadron 9, assumed duties as flagship for Commander, Task Group (TG) 73.5.

Wabash conducted 46 underway replenishments during her first tour on the "line" off the coast of Vietnam and celebrated Christmas at sea while returning to the Philippines.

This lasted through the summer, with operations in Philippine and Japanese waters, before the ship departed Subic Bay on 25 September to return to the United States.

On 9 July, however, she returned hurriedly to Subic Bay to load stores and cargo and departed the following day to conduct a "stern chase" of task group TG 77.7.

En route, Wabash rendezvoused with Mars to load further supplies and stores, transited the Strait of Malacca, and entered the Indian Ocean on 17 July.

Wabash conducted underway replenishments with Ranger, Preble, Goldsborough, and Ouellet, as task force TF 77 "showed the flag" in the Indian Ocean as part of the American effort to balance a growing Soviet presence in that area of the world.

The replenishment ship subsequently conducted local operations in the Philippines in September and in Japanese waters in October—operating out of Sasebo—before visiting Pusan, Korea.

Refresher training continued throughout the spring until the replenishment ship entered Todd Shipyard, Alameda, on 15 June for the commencement of a regular overhaul.