Blitz - class aviso The " Blitz " class was a pair of aviso s built by the Imperial German Navy ( " Kaiserliche Marine " ) in the 1880s . The ships , and , were the first steel - hulled ships of any kind built by the German Navy , and the progenitors of the later light cruiser s of the " Gazelle " type . They were armed with a gun and one torpedo tube as their principal armament , and were capable of a top speed in excess of . " Blitz " and " Pfeil " served extensively in various roles , including as flotilla leaders for torpedo boat s . " Pfeil " was deployed to German East Africa in 1889 to suppress an anti - colonial revolt , and after 1899 , was used for fishery protection . They were both reduced to tenders by 1912 . " Blitz " was briefly used as a coastal patrol vessel early in World War I before returning to tender duties by 1915 . Both ships survived the war , and were sold for scrap in the early 1920s . Design . The " Blitz " class avisos were the first step toward creating the modern , steel - hulled light cruiser , which would ultimately come to fruition in the , built a decade later . The " Blitz " - class ships were also the first steel - hulled ships of any type built by the German Navy . At the time of their completion , they were among the earliest torpedo cruisers in the world . General characteristics . The " Blitz " - class ships were long at the waterline and long overall . They had a beam of and a maximum draft of forward . The ships displaced as designed and up to at full combat load . The ships ' hulls were constructed with transverse and longitudinal steel frames , and contained eleven watertight compartments . A double bottom was located beneath the ships ' engine rooms . " Blitz " and " Pfeil " had a crew of 7 officers and 127 enlisted men , though this number was later revised to 6 officers and 135 sailors . When serving as torpedo boat flotilla leaders , the ships had an additional 3 officers and 16 enlisted men . The ships carried several smaller boats , including one picket boat , one yawl , and one dinghy . Later in their careers , a cutter , another yawl , and another dinghy were added . Machinery . The ships ' propulsion system consisted of two horizontal 2 - cylinder double expansion engines in a single engine room . The engines drove a pair of 3 - bladed screws . Steam for the engines was provided by eight coal - fired locomotive boiler s . After refits in the early 1890s , the ships ' boilers were replaced with newer , more efficient models ; " Blitz " received eight transverse cylindrical boilers , while " Pfeil " had eight cylindrical boilers installed . The ships were supplied with electrical power with a single generator that operated at 67 volts . As built , the ships were fitted with a schooner rig with a sail area of to supplement her steam engines , but this was later reduced to a rig of auxiliary sails with an area of , and the sails were removed entirely by 1900 . The propulsion system was rated at , for a top speed of . Neither ship reached this speed on trials ; " Blitz " managed , and " Pfeil " made . The ships carried up to of coal , which allowed them to steam for approximately at a cruising speed of . Steering was controlled with one rudder . Armament . As built , the " Blitz " - class avisos were armed with one K L / 23 gun placed in a pivot mount . The gun was supplied with 100 rounds of ammunition . The ships were also equipped with four 8 . 7 cm K L / 23 guns in single mounts and one torpedo tube mounted in the bow . In 1891 and 1892 , the ships were rearmed with six 8 . 8 cm SK L / 30 gun s in single mounts and three 35 cm torpedo tubes , one in the bow and one on each broadside , all submerged in the hull . The ships did not carry any armor protection . Service history . " Blitz " was laid down at the Norddeutscher Schiffbau in Kiel in 1881 . She was launched on 26 August 1882 and commissioned into the German fleet on 28 March 1883 . " Pfeil " was built by the " Kaiserliche Werft " shipyard in Wilhelmshaven . Her keel was laid down in 1881 , she was launched on 16 September 1882 , and commissioned into the German fleet on 25 November 1884 . Both ships served in the fleet following their commissioning . " Blitz " was assigned as the flagship of the I Torpedo - boat Flotilla , while " Pfeil " initially served as a tender for the fleet . " Blitz " participated in extensive training and experimentation in the Torpedo School , under the command of Alfred von Tirpitz , the future architect of the High Seas Fleet . In 1889 , " Pfeil " was sent to German East Africa to participate in the suppression of a local revolt against German colonial rule . By 1899 , both ships were withdrawn from front line service ; " Pfeil " was used for fishery protection , and " Blitz " became a fleet tender . In 1912 , both " Blitz " and " Pfeil " were serving as tenders to the I Battle Squadron and the II Battle Squadron , respectively . At the outbreak of World War I in August 1914 , " Blitz " was mobilized as a coastal patrol ship , while " Pfeil " remained a tender . " Blitz " returned to her tender duties in 1915 . Both ships were sold for scrapping in the early 1920s .