On 23 October the destroyer detached from WS23 upon being relieved by the sloop and the cruiser , returning to Freetown. "Avon Vale" then passed to Gibraltar to escort military convoys before the allied landings in North Africa. On 8 November "Avon Vale" joined the Central Naval Task Force to support the landings at Oran. The destroyer was then released for convoy escort duties, a role which was carried out all through December in support of military operations in North Africa.