On 8 November, fleet radar detected fifteen SM.79 trimotor bombers approaching at about twelve thousand feet and gave roughly fifteen minutes of warning. Two or three Fulmars intercepted, shot one bomber down and forced the others to jettison their bombs or evade. None reached a position over the fleet. A small fighter patrol had disrupted a much larger formation, a concrete reason to value the Fulmar in its November 1940 role. Illustrious needed effective fighter cover as well as Swordfish to carry out the Taranto operation.
Notable Point · 1:41:18-1:43:02
A few Fulmars disrupt fifteen SM.79 bombers
Radar warning let two or three Fulmars break up a fifteen-bomber attack before it reached the fleet, demonstrating the fighter's value in its 1940 role.