"Cressida" was built in Lübeck in early 1939 as a cargo vessel by the shipbuilder Lübecker Maschinenbau-Gesellschaft. On 1 October 1939, the ship was requisitioned by the Kriegsmarine as V 102 and was placed in the "1 Vorpostenflotille". The ship participated in the German invasion of Denmark in April 1940, escorting the steamer "Rugard" and tugs "Monsun" and "Passat" alongside V 103 "Sylvia" and several minesweepers. The group landed three companies of the 170th Infantry Division at Middlefart.