German Submarine U-66 (1940)
German submarine U-66 was a Type IXC U-boat of the German Kriegsmarine during World War II. The submarine was laid down on 20 March 1940 at the AG Weser yard at Bremen, launched on 10 October and commissioned on 2 January 1941 under the command of Kapitänleutnant Richard Zapp as part of the 2. Unterseebootsflottille.
After her transfer from a training organization to front line service in May 1941, until her sinking in May 1944, U-66 conducted nine combat patrols, sinking 33 merchant ships, for a total of 200,021 gross register tons (GRT), and damaged two British motor torpedo boats. She was a member of four wolfpacks.
U-66 was the seventh most successful U-boat in World War II.
On 6 May 1944, during her ninth patrol, she was sunk west of the Cape Verde Islands by depth charges, ramming and gunfire from Avenger and Wildcat aircraft of the US escort carrier Block Island and by the destroyer escort USS Buckley.
Read more about German Submarine U-66 (1940): Summary of Raiding History
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