mines had been laid, along with four others, on 20 July. U-66 subsequently sank the 766 GRT Polish Rozewie on 6 August and the American Topa Topa on the 29th. The next day she sank both the Panamanian Sir Huon and the American West Lashaway in separate attacks. A raft with survivors from West Lashaway was sighted by three aircraft on 18 September; , one of the escorts of a small convoy went to investigate. Deciding that the raft could be a disguised U-boat, Vimy opened fire, luckily with no result. The raft's sail was hastily cut down, upon which the British destroyer rescued 17 people. U-66 also sank the Winamac on 31 August and the Swedish Peiping on 9 September. She returned to Lorient on 29 September. Seventh (aborted) On 9 November 1942, U-66 left Lorient on what should have been her seventh war patrol. Soon after departure, leaks were encountered, and she decided to return. On 10 November, the day before she returned, a British Wellington bomber, equipped with a Leigh Light, spotted her and dropped four depth charges. The U-boat escaped without serious damage. Seventh U-66 left Lorient on 6 January 1943 for what was officially her seventh patrol. On 20 January, the ship landed an espionage agent on the coast of Mauritania, but the agent and two crewmen were immediately captured. Her first sinking came with the attack on the 113 GRT French Joseph Elise on 1 February. On the 27th, U-66 attacked the 4,312 GRT British coal merchant ship St. Margaret in mid-Atlantic near Bermuda, sinking her with one torpedo and, after several misses, a shell. Several survivors were captured and taken to the prison camp Marlag und Milag Nord. U-66 then returned to port, arriving on 24 March 1943. Eighth U-66s eighth patrol started after a quick refit on 7 April 1943 when she left Lorient. At 148 days, it was to be her longest. She first sank the 10,173 GRT American Esso Gettysburg, which was carrying crude oil, on 10 June after unsuccessfully attempting to attack several other American tankers. On 2 July, she successfully sank the 10,195 GRT Bloody Marsh (this ship was on her maiden voyage), with a torpedo. The last ship encountered on the patrol was the 10,172 GRT Cherry Valley, also American, which she sank on 22 July. U-66 then returned to Lorient. Ninth On 16 January 1944, U-66