Eagle had been working hard on convoy protection when SM.79 near-misses caused damage whose seriousness was not identified until early November. Her air group included Swordfish and Sea Gladiators, and five of its aircraft were transferred into Illustrious's striking force. Rear Admiral Lumley Lyster brought additional institutional experience: as captain of Glorious he had helped plan an earlier carrier attack on Taranto. Judging Eagle only by her later loss obscures the value of a worked-up carrier and air group in the early Mediterranean campaign. Cunningham could contemplate risk against a numerically stronger Italian battle fleet because he had carrier strike power available. Had the raid gone ahead on its original 21 October date, Eagle was still operating and likely would have joined Illustrious, but a fire that damaged three Swordfish aboard Illustrious helped postpone the attack.
Notable Point · 7:13-10:01
Why HMS Eagle still mattered in 1940
Near-miss damage sidelined Eagle, but her experienced Swordfish and Sea Gladiator air group made her a far more valuable Mediterranean asset than her later reputation suggests.