The ship's most- publicized case occurred during January 1986, when "Dauntless" was first to arrive and served as on-scene commander (until relieved by USCGC "Dallas") for the response to the space shuttle "Challenger" disaster. On November 24, 1995, Dauntless rescued 578 migrants from a grossly overloaded 75-foot coastal freighter, the largest number of migrants rescued from a single vessel in Coast Guard history.