The ships had extensive careers, remaining in active service for more than thirty years. "Blitz" spent much of her career as a flotilla leader for torpedo boats, while "Pfeil" served with the training squadron and the main fleet. "Pfeil" was deployed to German East Africa in 1889 to suppress the Abushiri revolt, returning to Germany in 1890. Throughout the 1890s, the ships served with the fleet, conducting a yearly routine of exercises and training cruises. They served in a variety of additional roles during the 1890s and 1900s, including as tenders, fishery protection vessels, and training ships. They operated as dedicated tenders to the battle squadrons of the High Seas Fleet by the mid-1900s, filling that role through the start of World War I. "Blitz" took part in Operation Albion in the Baltic Sea in late 1917 and "Pfeil" was later used as a training ship for U-boat crews. Both ships were discarded in the early 1920s.