What a mid-1930s Taranto strike might have required

What might a Taranto-style operation launched from HMS Glorious in the mid-1930s have looked like?

It could have used roughly twice as many Swordfish, supported by Mediterranean deck parking and either an early homing beacon or a prearranged searchlight navigation aid.

HMS Glorious could plausibly have mounted a larger Swordfish effort than Illustrious eventually launched. In Mediterranean conditions, Glorious and Courageous could use deck parking to operate air groups approaching Ark Royal's practical scale, whereas North Atlantic weather made deck parking much less attractive. A mid-1930s force would have had a homing beacon available only near the end of the period and might otherwise have relied on a vertically aimed searchlight at a prearranged time. This counterfactual shows how climate, deck-handling practice, and navigation systems shaped practical strike strength.