Taranto was undertaken by the Eastern Mediterranean force while the Royal Navy was running convoys and operations around the world. It was one part of Cunningham's overlapping Mediterranean programme rather than the single first-priority effort of the entire service. Pearl Harbor enabled Japan to concentrate six carriers and extensive supporting resources before open war with the United States. Comparing only carrier or aircraft totals obscures the operational pressures under which the Taranto force was assembled and employed.
Notable Point · 56:09-59:20
Taranto was one operation in a global war
The raid's achievement is clearer when viewed as part of Cunningham's overlapping Mediterranean commitments rather than as a navy concentrating every available carrier for one blow.