Her retirement, however, lasted less than 18 months.
On 30 November 1950, she was ordered reactivated in response to the Navy's urgent need for warships – particularly for aircraft carriers – to prosecute the war which had erupted in Korea the previous summer.
On 3 February 1951, Tarawa was recommissioned at Newport, Rhode Island, Captain J. H. Griffin in command.
Though reactivated in response to the Korean War, Tarawa never saw service in that conflict.
Rather, she served as a replacement in the 6th and 2nd Fleets for carriers dispatched to the war zone.
On 1 October 1952, she became an attack aircraft carrier, and was redesignated CVA-40.
The warship finally made it to the Asiatic war zone in the spring of 1954, but long after the July 1953 armistice had ended hostilities.

The ship returned to the east coast in September 1954 and resumed her normal operations.
In December, she entered the Boston Naval Shipyard for overhaul and conversion to an antisubmarine warfare (ASW) aircraft carrier.
On 10 January 1955, while still undergoing conversion, she was redesignated CVS-40.
Her alterations were completed that summer and, after shakedown, the carrier operated around Quonset Point, Rhode Island, conducting training missions with the ASW air squadrons based there.
That fall, she participated in exercises with Hunter-Killer Group 4 before returning to Quonset Point to prepare for the 1956 Springboard exercise.
30 september 1957 she visited Rotterdam.

In August and September 1958, Tarawa was part of Navy Task Force 88 (TF 88) during Operation Argus, which was involved in conducting nuclear tests in the very high atmosphere.

Tarawa served with the Atlantic Fleet for the remainder of her active career.
She remained on the east coast, operating out of Quonset Point and Norfolk and occasionally visiting the Caribbean area for exercises.
In the main, her duty consisted of barrier patrols against the increasingly large Soviet submarine and surface fleet and assignments training pilots for the Atlantic Fleet.
On 1 May 1960, however, Tarawa's active career came to an end.
She was decommissioned and placed in reserve at Philadelphia, where she remained until the late 1960s.
During her retirement, she received one more change in designation when she became AVT-12 in May 1961.
On 1 June 1967, her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register, and on 3 October 1968, she was sold to the Boston Metals Corporation, Baltimore, Maryland for scrapping.
Her retirement, however, lasted less than 18 months. On 30 November 1950, she was ordered reactivated in response to the Navy's urgent need for warships – particularly for aircraft carriers – to prosecute the war which had erupted in Korea the previous summer. On 3 February 1951, Tarawa was recommissioned at Newport, Rhode Island, Captain J. H. Griffin in command. Though reactivated in response to the Korean War, Tarawa never saw service in that conflict. Rather, she served as a replacement in the 6th and 2nd Fleets for carriers dispatched to the war zone. On 1 October 1952, she became an attack aircraft carrier, and was redesignated CVA-40. The warship finally made it to the Asiatic war zone in the spring of 1954, but long after the July 1953 armistice had ended hostilities.
The ship returned to the east coast in September 1954 and resumed her normal operations. In December, she entered the Boston Naval Shipyard for overhaul and conversion to an antisubmarine warfare (ASW) aircraft carrier. On 10 January 1955, while still undergoing conversion, she was redesignated CVS-40. Her alterations were completed that summer and, after shakedown, the carrier operated around Quonset Point, Rhode Island, conducting training missions with the ASW air squadrons based there. That fall, she participated in exercises with Hunter-Killer Group 4 before returning to Quonset Point to prepare for the 1956 Springboard exercise. 30 september 1957 she visited Rotterdam.
In August and September 1958, Tarawa was part of Navy Task Force 88 (TF 88) during Operation Argus, which was involved in conducting nuclear tests in the very high atmosphere.
Tarawa served with the Atlantic Fleet for the remainder of her active career. She remained on the east coast, operating out of Quonset Point and Norfolk and occasionally visiting the Caribbean area for exercises. In the main, her duty consisted of barrier patrols against the increasingly large Soviet submarine and surface fleet and assignments training pilots for the Atlantic Fleet. On 1 May 1960, however, Tarawa's active career came to an end. She was decommissioned and placed in reserve at Philadelphia, where she remained until the late 1960s. During her retirement, she received one more change in designation when she became AVT-12 in May 1961. On 1 June 1967, her name was struck from the Naval Vessel Register, and on 3 October 1968, she was sold to the Boston Metals Corporation, Baltimore, Maryland for scrapping.
USS Tarawa (CV-40)