HMS Gazelle (J342) explained

HMS Gazelle was a of the Royal Navy (the Catherine class was the British designation for the United States Navy's Auk-class minesweepers).^{[1] [2]}

In May 1945, as the war drew to a close, a flotilla of eight minesweepers including Gazelle took part in "Operation Cleaver" to clear the German mine barrage off the Skagerrak, making way for a squadron led by the light cruisers and with four destroyers to return the Danish government-in-exile to Copenhagen and take the surrender of German warships in Danish waters. The force reached Copenhagen on 9 May, taking control of the German cruisers and after their surrender.^[3]

Notes and References

1. Web site: HMS Gazelle (J 401) of the Royal Navy - British Minesweeper of the Auk class - Allied Warships of WWII . uboat.net.
2. Web site: BAM-17 . navsource.org.
3. Web site: Cleaver – Operations & Codenames of WWII.