Hope this is a good place to start this discussion. I am trying to determine if this is a fact or fiction story related by a relative.
As a young child (4-7 years old) she lived on the beach in Pensacola, Florida, USA while her father worked at the ship yard. She tells a story which we frankly discounted for years.

She begins by saying that all the kids were learning Morse code. One night she heard Morse code (I forget the context of how it was heard), but she noticed that the "person sending it 'couldn't spell'". She mentioned their inability to spell to her multi-lingual father who agreed. He then related this information to the authorities at the local military base.

The next day, she says she saw a plane fly over the coast and a bombing run followed, not far off the coast. The story ends with a discussion of boxes of cargo, including American-style clothing, washing onto the shore.

Again, this was always considered a tall tale by the family, but then we found out about U166 being sunk off the coast within a few hundred miles of this location, and within about a year of the correct time frame for the story. If the sub's presence was discovered near Pensacola, could it have disappeared, then traveled about 100 miles or more undetected in the clear waters of the Gulf of Mexico? Does anyone have any records regarding the travel paths of U166 before sinking? I am aware that the sinking took place closer to Mississippi than Florida, and was sunk by depth charges, not a plane. Is it possible that there could have been another Uboat in this area that did not get sunk?

Thank you for any insight you might be able to give.