These ships were primarily designed for service in Southeast Asian waters, including the rivers, and most of the ships spent at least one commission there. "Hornet", "Midge", and "Gnat" spent their whole careers there. "Gnat"s service, however, was rather short as she ran aground and was wrecked on Balabac Island, south of the Philippines, less than a year after she was commissioned. Their duties included protecting British lives and property and fighting pirates. Another major deployment area was the Gulf of Guinea in West Africa where "Fly", "Lynx", "Flirt", "Dwarf", "Beacon", "Avon", "Pert", "Growler", "Rocket", "Hart", and "Boxer" all spent part of one or more commissions. "Beacon" supported British coastal operations during the Third Anglo-Ashanti War in 1873 while most of the others engaged river pirates at various times. "Rocket", "Elk", "Dwarf", "Beacon", and "Avon" served at least one commission off the south-east coast of South America, while "Cracker" spent her entire career there. "Dwarf" made a port visit to Asunción, on the Paraguay River, some from the ocean during one of her tours in the region. "Teazer", "Lynx", "Beacon", and "Thistle" each made one deployment to the East Indies Station where they helped to suppress the slave trade between East Africa and the Persian Gulf. "Beacon", "Hart", and "Growler" were deployed to the Mediterranean where the former participated in the Bombardment of Alexandria in 1882. "Fly", "Flirt", "Boxer", and "Pert" each spent a commission on fishery patrol on the Grand Banks of Newfoundland. "Boxer" was also deployed to British Columbia to maintain order with the Indian tribes there.