Abdiel went on minelaying operations before completing her trials, initially helping cover possible breakouts by Scharnhorst and Gneisenau. A Greek-coast field laid in May 1941 quickly struck Italian and German vessels connected with the movement of elements of the 2nd Panzer Division. She then carried supplies and thousands of troops around the Mediterranean, showing how transport demands could displace the specialist mission. During Operation Slapstick at Taranto, Abdiel accepted a berth that the captain of USS Boise had declined. Two mines laid only hours earlier by German torpedo boats detonated beneath her, and she sank in three minutes with heavy loss among sailors and soldiers. Speed could not protect the ship once she entered a newly mined harbour.
Chapter · 18:02-21:50
HMS Abdiel's Mediterranean wartime service
Before completing trials, Abdiel was already laying mines and carrying supplies and troops in the Mediterranean; she was later lost to mines at Taranto.