Roughly twenty aircraft caused more damage to the Italian fleet than the German High Seas Fleet suffered in the daylight action at Jutland. The result depended on a moonlit night, long overwater navigation, lightly built Swordfish, and crews carrying heavy weapons through a defended harbour. The aircraft flew for about six and a half hours from carrier to carrier, with only two crew members aboard to limit weight. Taranto showed what a small carrier air group could achieve through training and careful planning.
Chapter · 27:16-29:16
Twenty aircraft and the coming of carrier air power
About twenty aircraft inflicted damage on a battle fleet that would have required a much larger surface action under different conditions.