Carthage's overloaded relief expedition

Hanno's relief fleet took roughly nine months to assemble under pressure after years of war. Carthage was already maintaining operations in Sicily and North Africa, and the new force lacked sufficient personnel and training. The plan was to run supplies into besieged Sicilian cities, embark soldiers as marines, then defeat the Roman fleet and resume the offensive. Warships carried cargo as well as the accompanying transports. One proposed explanation is that this saved money and improved the chance of supplies getting through if transports were intercepted. The plan depended on a following wind and surprise before Rome could concentrate. By this stage, many soldiers on both sides had been born after the war began.