Italian records list thousands of heavy anti-aircraft rounds but surprisingly few 20 mm and 40 mm rounds for weapons with much higher rates of fire. The figures remain uncertain. The light weapons may have been poorly supplied, their expenditure may have been under-reported, or both problems may have applied. Guns firing at extremely low Swordfish also risked hitting friendly ships across the harbour. The passage combines quantitative source criticism with a practical reason why the attackers' low-and-slow approach complicated the defence.
Notable Point · 2:59:19-3:08:05
What Italian ammunition figures reveal about the defence
Reported light anti-aircraft expenditure looks unusually low, raising questions about ammunition supply, record accuracy, and safe firing angles.