How the Allied defense of Crete might have worked

Could the Allied defense of Crete have succeeded in the Second World War?

Yes; one important change would have been maintaining command continuity and allowing staffs to overlap instead of repeatedly replacing plans and personnel.

Several changes could have improved the defense, beginning with retaining the commander who had overseen the first British deployment and was already integrating reinforcements into a working plan. Repeated changes of commanders and staff, without sufficient overlap, caused each incoming team to arrive without understanding its predecessor's scheme. Command continuity was an operational capability in its own right.