 The "Archers" were initially used as Royal Navy patrol craft and as training tenders for the Royal Naval Reserve (RNR) and University Royal Naval Units (URNU).Four identical vessels were ordered for the Royal Naval Auxiliary Service (RNXS) as "Example"-class tenders.When that service was disbanded in 1994, the "Examples" were transferred to the Royal Navy for similar duties as their "Archer"-class brethren (under the same names under which they served as "XSVs", all of which begin with the first syllable "Ex").