HMS Gannet was a river gunboat, built by Yarrow Shipbuilders in 1927 for Yangtze Patrol. HMS Gannet was the sister ship of HMS Peterel. Originally functioning in the area of Hong Kong, HMS Gannet was damaged by Japanese aircraft and went to the Chinese wartime capital Chongqing for repairs. The gunboat and its sister ship HMS Peterel were chosen by the British to be presents for China, and the transfers were made in February 1942

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