A freed Ark Royal transforms the Taranto strike

French control of the western Mediterranean frees Ark Royal to join Illustrious and Eagle for Taranto. Having another carrier available would give Eagle time for repairs and Illustrious more opportunity to work up. The resulting strike is estimated at 84 Swordfish and 24 Skuas, compared with 21 aircraft out of 24 planned in the historical attack. The larger group could attack more ships and use Skuas against targets that escaped the torpedo bombers' reach in the actual raid. Skuas could reach Giulio Cesare, although their 500-pound bombs were expected to inflict limited damage and the outcome remained uncertain. British tension wires also let aerial torpedoes enter shallow water effectively, making the enlarged attack especially dangerous to the Regia Marina.