Military effectiveness and public meaning were different questions at Mers-el-Kebir. British naval aviation had already acted there, but the attack was a necessary and distasteful response to lost confidence in the French government's assurances after the fall of France. Its political burden made it a poor example through which to promote the Fleet Air Arm. Taranto gave naval aviators a clear offensive success against an enemy fleet and made Illustrious central to the service's institutional story.
Notable Point · 59:38-1:00:43
From Mers-el-Kebir to Taranto in Fleet Air Arm reputation
Taranto gave the Fleet Air Arm an affirmative demonstration of carrier striking power after Mers-el-Kebir had been overshadowed by the politics of attacking the French fleet.