From 26 January to 26 February 1966, "Kiowa" participated in the search for a hydrogen bomb that fell into the Mediterranean Sea off Palomares, Spain, following the crash of a United States Air Force B-52G Stratofortress bomber after a collision with a tanker aircraft. After this search, "Kiowa" proceeded to South Wales in the United Kingdom and then to San Juan, Puerto Rico, ultimately arriving home at Little Creek on 16 April 1966.