Blitz-class aviso
Pfeil in 1899
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| Class overview | |
|---|---|
| Operators: |
 Kaiserliche Marine
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| Preceded by: | SMS Zieten |
| Succeeded by: | SMS Greif |
| Built: | 1881–84 |
| In service: | 1883–1922 |
| Completed: | 2 |
| Retired: | 2 |
| General characteristics | |
| Displacement: | 1,486 tonnes (1,463 long tons) |
| Length: | 78.43 m (257 ft 4 in) o/a |
| Beam: | 9.90 m (32 ft 6 in) |
| Draft: | 4.22 m (13 ft 10 in) |
| Propulsion: | 2 × 2-cylinder double expansion engines, 2 shafts |
| Speed: | 15.7 knots (29.1 km/h; 18.1 mph) |
| Range: | 2,440 nmi (4,520 km; 2,810 mi) at 9 knots (17 km/h; 10 mph) |
| Complement: |
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| Armament: |
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The Blitz class was a pair of avisos built by the Imperial German Navy (Kaiserliche Marine) in the 1880s. The ships, Blitz and Pfeil, were the first steel-hulled ships of any kind built by the German Navy, and the progenitors of the later light cruisers of the Gazelle type. They were armed with a 12.5 cm (4.9 in) gun and one 35 cm (14 in) torpedo tube as their principal armament, and were capable of a top speed in excess of 15 knots (28 km/h; 17 mph).
Blitz and Pfeil served extensively in various roles, including as flotilla leaders for torpedo boats. 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.
The Blitz class avisos were the first step toward creating the modern, steel-hulled light cruiser, which would ultimately come to fruition in the Gazelle class, 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.
The Blitz-class ships were 75.30 meters (247 ft 1 in) long at the waterline and 78.43 m (257 ft 4 in) long overall. They had a beam of 9.90 m (32 ft 6 in) and a maximum draft of 4.07 m (13 ft 4 in) forward. The ships displaced 1,381 metric tons (1,359 long tons) as designed and up to 1,486 t (1,463 long tons) 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.
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