After completing sea trials on 15 April 1975, Basilone participated in a 2nd Fleet exercise during the latter half of the month. Following a month of preparation, the warship commenced a 10-day transit to the Mediterranean on 12 June. The destroyer joined for carrier operations and helped search for five airmen downed in a collision between two Navy aircraft. Rest and replenishment at Sicily and Naples occupied her time in July. After a week-long NATO exercise in August, and brief operations in the eastern Mediterranean early in September, she took part in 6th Fleet exercises during late September and early October. November brought with it a visit to Toulon, France, followed by an exercise with French naval units. After completing her part in a 6th Fleet amphibious exercise, Basilone visited Barcelona from 4 to 9 December before heading for turnover at Rota. She stopped at Rota from the 10th to the 12th and then embarked on the voyage back to Norfolk, where she arrived on the 22nd.
