Q&A: How long did the invasion fleet need to stay at sea?

How much endurance would a fleet carrying so many people have?

It needed supplies for a short coastal passage and the crossing toward Carthage, measured in days rather than months.

The fleet was not intended to remain at sea for a long period. Much of its movement followed the coast before the crossing from southern Italy toward Carthage. That made its immediate endurance requirement a matter of days, which helps explain how so many people could be supplied for the operation.