On 11 March 1980, the ship finally put into Muscat, Oman, for fuel as she began her voyage homeward.
Three days later, Ainsworth topped off her oil bunkers at Djibouti and continued on through the Red Sea, the Suez Canal, and the Mediterranean, to Gibraltar.
Following brief stops in the Azores and at Bermuda, she ended the deployment upon her arrival at Norfolk on 17 April.

After a month of leave and upkeep, the ship took part in COMPUTEX 4–80 and carried out naval gunfire support qualifications.
At the end of a four-day visit to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, she got underway for home on 19 June and proceeded via Port Everglades to Norfolk which she reached on the 23d.
Two days later, she entered the Norfolk Naval Shipyard for a restricted availability which lasted until 11 August.
The vessel then began preparations for overseas movement and got underway on the 29th for Exercise "United Effort" and "Teamwork 80" which kept her at sea in the North Atlantic and the North Sea until she arrived at Copenhagen, Denmark, on 24 September.
She also put into Oslo, Norway, Leith and Rosyth, Scotland, and Portsmouth, England, en route home which she reached on 2 November.

After remaining in the Norfolk area into the new year, the frigate sailed on 6 January 1981 for Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, where she supported submarine training until 9 January.
She then prepared for READEX 1–81 and gunfire qualifications which kept her busy until 17 February when work began on making the ship ready for another deployment to the Middle East.
She got underway on 18 March and reached Rota on 29 March.
After transiting the Suez Canal and the Red Sea from 14 to 17 April, she entered the Indian Ocean and headed back toward the Persian Gulf.
After refueling at Sitra, Bahrain, she operated near the Strait of Hormuz until 11 May and then took part in Exercise PASSEX in the Gulf of Oman with the British vessels Bacchante and Minerva.
Next came battle group operations with the aircraft carrier America and a visit to Kenya.
En route to Mombasa, the ship crossed the equator on 23 May. Upon finishing another PASSEX on 3 June, an exercise conducted with two fast patrol boats of the Kenya Navy, she sailed for Sitra, Bahrain, in company with the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk, en route to the Persian Gulf, and conducted operations with that carrier's battle group.

Following almost a month's labors in the vicinity of the Persian Gulf, she sailed for Djibouti on 8 July—beginning the first leg of her voyage home—and took part in further exercises with Bacchante and Minerva in the Gulf of Oman and in operations with America in the Arabian Sea.
She reentered the Mediterranean on the 19th and reached Haifa, Israel, two days later.
Heading eastward on the 24th, she stopped at Palermo, Sicily, from 27 July to 8 August and then operated with carriers Nimitz and Forrestal until 19 August.
On the last two days of those operations, she took part in a missile exercise in the Gulf of Sidra, in international waters off the coast of Libya.
After arriving at Rota on 22 August, Ainsworth took part in Exercises "Ocean Venture" and "Magic Sword" before sailing for home on 4 September with the battle group built around Forrestal and reached Norfolk on 15 September.

Following a month in leave and upkeep status at Norfolk, the ship moved to the York River on 15 October to take part in ceremonies celebrating the bicentennial of the American victory at Yorktown.
On 20 October, she headed for the Bahamas to serve as a schoolship in antisubmarine warfare training for future commanding officers on the AUTEC Range at Andros Island.
She returned to Norfolk on 2 November and, three days later, entered the Home Brothers' Shipyard for a selected restricted availability.
This work was completed on 4 January 1982; and, but for short operations in the Caribbean during the latter half of February and the first half of October, the frigate spent most of the year in the vicinity of Norfolk.

She again weighed anchor on 27 December 1982 shortly after departure from Norfolk the ship is believed to have struck
On 11 March 1980, the ship finally put into Muscat, Oman, for fuel as she began her voyage homeward. Three days later, Ainsworth topped off her oil bunkers at Djibouti and continued on through the Red Sea, the Suez Canal, and the Mediterranean, to Gibraltar. Following brief stops in the Azores and at Bermuda, she ended the deployment upon her arrival at Norfolk on 17 April.
After a month of leave and upkeep, the ship took part in COMPUTEX 4–80 and carried out naval gunfire support qualifications. At the end of a four-day visit to Port-au-Prince, Haiti, she got underway for home on 19 June and proceeded via Port Everglades to Norfolk which she reached on the 23d. Two days later, she entered the Norfolk Naval Shipyard for a restricted availability which lasted until 11 August. The vessel then began preparations for overseas movement and got underway on the 29th for Exercise "United Effort" and "Teamwork 80" which kept her at sea in the North Atlantic and the North Sea until she arrived at Copenhagen, Denmark, on 24 September. She also put into Oslo, Norway, Leith and Rosyth, Scotland, and Portsmouth, England, en route home which she reached on 2 November.
After remaining in the Norfolk area into the new year, the frigate sailed on 6 January 1981 for Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, where she supported submarine training until 9 January. She then prepared for READEX 1–81 and gunfire qualifications which kept her busy until 17 February when work began on making the ship ready for another deployment to the Middle East. She got underway on 18 March and reached Rota on 29 March. After transiting the Suez Canal and the Red Sea from 14 to 17 April, she entered the Indian Ocean and headed back toward the Persian Gulf. After refueling at Sitra, Bahrain, she operated near the Strait of Hormuz until 11 May and then took part in Exercise PASSEX in the Gulf of Oman with the British vessels Bacchante and Minerva. Next came battle group operations with the aircraft carrier America and a visit to Kenya. En route to Mombasa, the ship crossed the equator on 23 May. Upon finishing another PASSEX on 3 June, an exercise conducted with two fast patrol boats of the Kenya Navy, she sailed for Sitra, Bahrain, in company with the aircraft carrier Kitty Hawk, en route to the Persian Gulf, and conducted operations with that carrier's battle group.
Following almost a month's labors in the vicinity of the Persian Gulf, she sailed for Djibouti on 8 July—beginning the first leg of her voyage home—and took part in further exercises with Bacchante and Minerva in the Gulf of Oman and in operations with America in the Arabian Sea. She reentered the Mediterranean on the 19th and reached Haifa, Israel, two days later. Heading eastward on the 24th, she stopped at Palermo, Sicily, from 27 July to 8 August and then operated with carriers Nimitz and Forrestal until 19 August. On the last two days of those operations, she took part in a missile exercise in the Gulf of Sidra, in international waters off the coast of Libya. After arriving at Rota on 22 August, Ainsworth took part in Exercises "Ocean Venture" and "Magic Sword" before sailing for home on 4 September with the battle group built around Forrestal and reached Norfolk on 15 September.
Following a month in leave and upkeep status at Norfolk, the ship moved to the York River on 15 October to take part in ceremonies celebrating the bicentennial of the American victory at Yorktown. On 20 October, she headed for the Bahamas to serve as a schoolship in antisubmarine warfare training for future commanding officers on the AUTEC Range at Andros Island. She returned to Norfolk on 2 November and, three days later, entered the Home Brothers' Shipyard for a selected restricted availability. This work was completed on 4 January 1982; and, but for short operations in the Caribbean during the latter half of February and the first half of October, the frigate spent most of the year in the vicinity of Norfolk.
She again weighed anchor on 27 December 1982 shortly after departure from Norfolk the ship is believed to have struck
USS Ainsworth