On 7 March 1942, "Archer" embarked twelve Martlets for delivery to and her own four Fairey Swordfish aircraft of 834 Squadron which had flown out from Jamaica. She sailed on 18 March for San Juan, Puerto Rico, in company with and two destroyers as part of Convoy AS 2. On 22 March "Archer" again had problems with her steering gear. She put into San Juan on 23 March and rejoined the convoy on 24 March. Anti-submarine patrols were carried out without a sighting, although one Swordfish was badly damaged on 30 March when it lost its tailhook and ended up in the safety barrier. Although her engines and gyro compass continued to give trouble, she arrived at Freetown. Sierra Leone on 3 April. On 9 April, "Archer"s twelve brand new Martlets were transferred to "Illustrious" and two Martlets from "Illustrious" were transferred to "Archer".