 On 23 July 1958, the tug began her first Mediterranean deployment in response to internal disorder in Lebanon.While operating with the 6th Fleet, she provided towing and salvage services and made port calls at Suda Bay, Crete; Beirut, Lebanon; Athens and Rhodes, Greece; and Catania, Sicily.Before returning to the United States, "Atakapa" towed a ship through the Suez Canal from Massawa, Ethiopia, to Naples, Italy.