After shakedown Lackawanna departed Norfolk, Virginia, on 15 August 1942 bound for fueling operations in the Pacific. Arriving at New Caledonia on 18 September, the oiler replenished ships out of Nouméa for the next three months. Following overhaul at San Pedro, California, Lackawanna resumed operations as a unit of ServRon 8 in the Central Pacific on 16 February 1943.