She was ordered by Royal Netherlands Navy and laid down on 13 September 1928 at the Royal Shipyard at Willemsoord, Den Helder, the first of four minesweepers in her class each denominated by a letter (, , ). She was launched on 19 April 1929 and completed on 4 August 1930. She arrived at Surabaya on October 20 1930 towed by the tugboats "Friesland" and "Vlaanderen". On 28 February 1942, she was attacked and damaged by Japanese aircraft at Surabaya. On 1 March 1942, during the Battle of Java, she was scuttled by her crew at Surabaya.