The two destroyers, now reinforced by "Z7 Hermann Schoemann" and assigned to "Zerstörergruppe Arktis" (Destroyer Group Arctic), commanded by "Kapitän zur See" (Captain) Alfred Schulze-Hinrichs, searched unsuccessfully for Convoys PQ 14 and QP 10 on 11 April. On 30 April the torpedoed and crippled the light cruiser , part of the close escort for Convoy QP 11. Later that day, the trio of destroyers were ordered to intercept her. The following afternoon they encountered the main body of the convoy and attacked in limited visibility. Over the next four hours, they made five attempts to close with the convoy, but the four escorting British destroyers were able to keep themselves between the Germans and the convoy. After being rebuffed, Schulze-Hinrichs decided to break off the attack and search for his original objective. The German ships were only able to sink the freighter, , with torpedoes from "Z24" and "Z25", and badly damage the escort destroyer with gunfire. The British ships did not make any hits on the German destroyers.