Dear Seaplane,
The summer of 1942 is remembered by many as the time the war came to Louisiana. On July 30th of that year, just 45 miles from the mouth of the Mississippi River, German submarine U-166 sank the passenger freighter Robert E. Lee. But that ship was not the first victim of attacks in the Gulf of Mexico. In fact, there was a fleet of more than 20 U-boats cruising the Gulf trying to cut off oil supplies carried by tankers from ports in Texas, Louisiana and Florida. The U-boats sent 56 vessels to the bottom, but the U-166 was the only U-boat sunk there.

On that summer day, 400 passengers and crew were aboard. Ten days earlier, the ship had left Port of Spain, Trinidad, with refugees and contract workers and survivors of previous attacks. Because the ship was unable to stop at Tampa Bay, Fla., as planned, it continued on to New Orleans. The U-166 was waiting for it.

The 20-foot-long torpedo that struck the starboard side of the Robert E. Lee caused great damage to the engines, steering gear and radio. Immediately, the ship began to sink and people raced for lifeboats or jumped overboard.

A short distance away was another boat, the U.S. naval escort PC-566. The sub chaser gained sonar contact on the U-boat and dropped depth charges across its path as it tried to dive. After the attack, an oil slick appeared on the surface. The PC-566 crew, after sweeping the area without regaining sonar contact with the sub, decided they had either chased the sub from the area or had sunk it.

The operation, joined by the naval SC-519 and the pilot boat Underwriter, turned into a rescue mission as they began pulling survivors from the water. The survivors were taken to shore at Venice, La., but 25 people died on the Robert E. Lee.

Two days later, on a routine patrol south of Isles Dernieres, Louisiana, a U.S. Coast Guard Widgeon aircraft piloted by Chief Aviation Pilot Henry Clark White and Radioman First Class George Henderson Boggs Jr. spotted a submarine on the surface. The twin-engine plane got into attack position. Diving past 250 feet, White gave the command, and Boggs released the 325-pound depth charge. The submarine dove for cover. Although the sub was completely submerged at the time, it appeared that the strike had come close. The plane circled, and the men saw an oil slick appear on the surface.

After the war, the two men were given credit for sinking the U-166. And for more than 50 years, the only U-boat "kill" accredited to a Coast Guard aircraft became part of their tradition. Based on evidence available at the time, it was a justifiable claim. It seemed obvious to give White and Boggs the credit because, as records revealed, U-166 was the only submarine sunk in the Gulf, it was responsible for the sinking of the Robert E. Lee, and it was entirely possible that the boat had traveled the short distance from its location two days earlier.

But then came the discovery and positive identification of U-166 in May 2001. The wreckage was discovered by C & C Technologies archaeologists, and it lies within a mile of her last victim, the Robert E. Lee. Because of this discovery, it is now believed that U-166 had indeed been sunk by the U. S. Navy sub chaser PC-566 on July 30.