During World War II. U.S.S. Vance was engaged in escorting trans-Atlantic convoys. With two exceptions her work was routine. On May 14. 1944, off Oran, Algeria, she participated in the sinking of a German submarine which had succeeded in torpedoing, but not sinking two merchant ships of Vance's convoy. A year later, on May Il, 1945, when Vance was escorting a convoy off the Azores, a light was sighted in the convoy. Vance approached at full speed, illuminated the target with searchlights, and after a few convincing orders in German over the bull horn, the surfaced U-873 surrendered A prize crew from the Vance, headed by Lieut. C. J. Schmidt, U.S.C.G.R., boarded the U-boat and it was escorted safely back to Portsmouth, N.H.

Subsequent to V.E. Day, Vance was ordered to the Pacific theatre, but arrived too late to participate in other than training exercises. She was placed in mothballs with the inactive fleet at Green Cove Springs, Florida, in November, 1945, [# as printed; does not include USCGC VANCE as WDE487 in 1952 - 1954] and brought to Mare Island naval shipyard for conversion to a D.E.R. in November, 1955. The conversion was an extensive one, involving the addition of much new electronics equipment. Improved air and surface-search radar, a height finding set, and extensive communications equipment made up the new main battery of the ship. Complete facilities for the operational control oi interceptor aircrait were also included. Ordnance was modernised wiih upto-date additions and modifications. Loss of Living space resulting from increased equipment installations required the enclosing of the entire main deck amidships section to provide necessary berthing and messing spaces. An extensive programme of habitability improvements made Vance one of the most "liveable" ships in the fleet. The ship proceeded in March, 1957, to her new home port of Seattle, Washington, where she reported for duty with Escort Squadron 5.

Between March, 1957 and June, 1958, Vance completed 12 patrols on various stations of the radar early warning system in the North Pacific, While on picket duty she and her sister ships maintained a round-the-clock vigil with their air-search radar, tracking and reporting every aircraft leaving or approaching the coast of the North-western United States in order to prevent any air-borne attack from reaching our shores without warning. One of these patrols was noteworthy in that the Vance set something of a record in getting under way. On Labour Day, in the midst of a three-day weekend holiday, the ship was notified that one of the vessels on station had suffered a disabling engineering casualty requiring her immediate relief. Hastily summoning those personnel who could be reached ashore, Vance cleared her berth one hour and a quarter after receipt of her orders, and successfully completed a 12-day picket patrol with only 60 per cent. of her officers and men aboard. In this "can-do" spirit, Vance and her eight sisters of Cortron 5 are continuing to maintain their ceaseless vigil to help guard our shores from air-borne attack.

On June 1, 1958, the home port of the Vance was changed from Seattle, Washington, to Pearl Harbour, T.H. One month later she leit for a 29-day patrol on the new Mid-ocean-line which provides radar coverage from Alaska to Midway Island. This was a historic event as several years of planning went in to the formation of this extension of the Dew (Distant Early Warning) Line in the Pacific, and the Vance was the first ship to sail under the newly-organised Pacific Barrier Patrol.

On several occasions she was detached from her regular duties on station to take under surveillance Russian trawlers equipped as electronics intelligence vessels and often discovered more of Russian electronics capability than they did of hers. From February until May of 1961, Vance underwent a regular shipyard overhaul at Pearl Harbour naval shipyard. After a refresher training period, Vance returned to her regular Navaid/Sar duties on the Dew Line. Shortly thereafter she received orders to report to Commander Task Force 43 to act as ocean station vessel in Operation Deepfreeze 62.

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