The devastating surprise attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7th, 1941 was the brainchild of
Admiral Isoroku Yamamoto and it has probably been influenced by two things: a prophetic
novel “Great Pacific War”, written in 1925 by a British writer, Hector Charles Bywater,
which gave a realistic account of a clash between Japan and the United States, beginning
with the Japanese destruction of the US Pacific fleet.
And the battle of Taranto during which the British Royal Navy launched the first all
aircraft ship to ship naval attack in history against the Italian Regia Marina docked in
Taranto harbor.
Today we are going to talk about this battle that is relatively unknown, but changed so
much.
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During the 2nd World War Britain held Alexandria, Gibraltar, Crete, and Malta with the latter
serving as a refueling point for allied vessels between Alexandria and Gibraltar as well as
a submarine base.
Malta served as a major thorn for Italian supply lines to North Africa.
Britain had devised plans to attack Taranto, as early as 1935 after Italy invaded Abyssinia
in order to blunt the power of the Italian Navy - the Regia Marina.
In 1938 during the Munich Crisis, the British commander of the Mediterranean Fleet, Admiral
Sir Dudley Pound was concerned about the survival of the fleet if Italy attacked, so he ordered
his staff to re-examine the battle plans against Taranto.
Captain of HMS Glorious, Lumley Lyster, advised him that his Fairey Swordfish biplane torpedo
bombers were capable of night attacks, inspiring the battle plan codenamed operation judgment.
In 1940, both nations’ supply lines to their respective north African campaigns were suffering
, as the supply convoys had the ordeal of traversing the Mediterranean under the threat
of the other’s fleet.
The British supply convoys to Egypt had to cross the Mediterranean sea via Gibraltar
or Malta, dangerously close to Sicily, or take the long route around the Cape of Good
Hope and coming up the Suez canal.
While the latter was a long and slow route, going through the Mediterranean was far more
costly as the Italian Navy was in an excellent position to intercept them.
Italy was following the “fleet in being” concept, keeping their warships in harbour
and not risking a battle at sea where they might lose them , while the British sought
a decisive naval battle because Italy’s strategy stopped Britain from separating naval
forces in the Mediterranean under fear the Italian navy would destroy them.
Thus for the Italians, this defensive strategy served to hinder British operations at little
cost.
Alongside the Italian problem was the fall of France and the consequent loss of the French
fleet in the Mediterranean.
Britain could not allow French warships to fall into Axis hands and had to devise a plan
to neutralize them.
This prompted the British Royal Navy to perform operation Catapult on 3 July 1940, a naval
attack against the French ships in the naval base of Mers El Kébir at Oran in French Algeria.
What is significant about this attack was that on the 8th of July, British Carrier HMS
Hermes deployed Six Swordfish torpedo bombers of the 814’s squadron which struck the French
battleship Richelieu’s starboard side tearing a hole and severely damaging her.
The British pilots had gained valuable experience at aerial torpedo attacking a large ship at
port, mere months before Operation Judgement was to take place.
It was scheduled for October 21st, 1940 on Trafalgar Day . Operation Judgment’s naval
task force was commanded by Rear Admiral Lyster and consisted of the carrier HMS Illustrious,
heavy cruisers HMS Berwick and HMS York, light cruisers HMS Gloucester and Glasgow, destroyers
HMS Hyperion, Ilex, Hasty and Havelock.
Over twenty-one Swordfish were to be deployed from the 806, 813, 815, 819, and 824th Naval
Air Squadrons.
The Fairey Swordfish was a biplane designed by the Fairey Aviation Company and introduced
in 1936.
The slow speed of the aircraft required it to make long straight approaches, but the
aircraft had one unique perk, the ability to operate at night.
Its strength lay in the ability to be thrown about during atrocious weather conditions,
but still take off because of incredible handling and maneuverability.
Swordfish was reliable and ideal for safely launching from carriers, and this was critical
at night.
Half of the Swordfish were armed with 18inch MKII torpedoes with the other half carrying
250lb aerial bombs and flares for diversionary attacks.
The torpedoes were fitted with a “duplex pistol” device that used duplex magnetic/contact
exploders.
The Taranto force felt safe in their forty-foot deep harbor water, believing that air-dropped
torpedoes could not be effectively launched in such shallow waters.
However, the British attached wire to each torpedo nose holding it up as it fell to the
water, producing a belly flop instead of a dive.
This would allow them to be dropped in water as shallow as 22 feet.
Alongside this the Italians were not aware of the duplex pistol innovation which allowed
torpedoes to explode underneath the ships, which would prove to be a critical oversight.
The torpedo-equipped planes under moonlight would strike the battleships moored in the
outer harbor while the bombers would aim for ships and installation in the inner basin.
The attack would consist of two waves, one coming in from the west toward the rising
moon and another from the north.
Both waves would have aircraft shooting flares over the battleships to illuminate them.
To protect the torpedo planes it was decided that a distraction was required to keep the
searchlights directed upwards and not directly at the torpedo planes.
Thus some of the dive bomber Swordfish would attack the dockyards and ships in Mar Piccolo.
Several reconnaissance flights by Martin Marylands of the RAF No.431 General Reconnaissance flight
coming from Malta confirmed the location of the Regia Marina.
These scouts found the defenses of Taranto to hold 101 anti-aircraft guns, 193 machine
guns, and 90 low-flying barrage balloons, however by the time in early November a storm
hit the port leaving only 27 balloons.
The Regia Marina present in Taranto during the battle consisted of six battleships, nine
heavy cruisers, seven light cruisers, and 13 destroyers.
The defenses of Taranto harbor consisted of anti-torpedo nets, but Italy had two problems
- not enough netting and an inadequate design.
Taranto’s defense required 12,800 meters of netting, but only had 4200 meters when
the attack occurred.
The netting was designed to protect against torpedoes armed with contact pistols, protecting
the sides of a battleship and only a depth of its maximum draft.
Because of this, torpedoes could pass beneath the ship, providing almost no defense against
the duplex pistol-armed torpedoes.
The British had calculated a set run of 27 knots at a pre-set depth of 33 feet, this
would allow the torpedoes to pass under the Italian anti-torpedo nets while the Duplex
magnetic pistols would still sense a warship above and detonate.
Operation Judgement was part of the larger operation called MB8 requiring multiple naval
forces to coordinate.
The rationale for the complex movement of so many convoys and task forces was to confuse
the Italian reconnaissance planes and not give away the real intent to attack Taranto.
Surprise for the attack was paramount, thus when HMS Illustrious left port on November
6th with and it was publicly announced to be supporting a convoy on its way to Malta.
During the sunset on November 10th Illustrious secretly detached from the convoy fleet and
headed northeast in a direction just 170 miles southeast of Taranto.
The original date for the attack was October 21st, but because of a fire erupting on HMS
Illustrious, it had to be rescheduled for November 11th, a night that would hold enough
moonlight for aircraft to launch.
On the night of November 11th, 1940, twenty-one Swordfish were launched in two waves: the
first consisting of twelve airborne by 8:40 pm and the second consisting of nine by 9:34
pm.
Six aircraft of the first wave and four of the second wave carried the 250lb aerial bombs
and flares.
Four minutes to 11:00 pm the first wave split into two sections with three bombers and one
torpedo bomber straying from the main force.
The smaller force continued to Taranto while the main force approached the harbor at Mar
Grande at 22:58.
Over sixteen flares were dropped east of the harbor by Lt. Kiggell and Lt. Lamb while they
bombed oil depots setting them ablaze.
The next three torpedo bombers led by Lieutenant Commander Williamson’s 815’s Squadron,
flew over the Fulmine and Lampo, launching a torpedo and striking battleship Conte Di
Cavour, blasting a twenty-seven foto hole in her side below the waterline.
As Williamson tried to pull away from the Conte Di Cavour he was shot down by her anti-aircraft
guns.
Both Williamson and his co-pilot Lt. Scarlett survived crashing into the harbor but were
taken captive.
The other two planes dodged the barrage balloons and were lightly hit by anti-aircraft fire
from the Italian warships and shore batteries.
They attempted to attack the Battleship Andrea Doria but missed.
Lt. Kemp and Lt. Swayne’s plane came around both sides of battleship Littorio, launching
torpedoes hitting her on the starboard bow and on the port quarter sending Littorio into
the mud bow first.
Lt. Maund’s aircraft came directly at the battleship Vittorio Veneto launching a torpedo
but it ran aground before hitting her.
The bomber force, led by Captain O. Patch RM attacked two cruisers moored at Mar Piccolo,
hitting both with a single bomb at 1,500 feet.
At 11:05 pm Lt. Murray attempted to dive-bomb the destroyer Libeccio, but his bombs failed
to detonate.
S. Lt. Sarra could not manage to get close to a warship target and opted to bomb the
Seaplane base, severely damaging it.
S. Lt. Forde dropped bombs on a cruiser but was unable to confirm any explosions.
The second wave of eight aircraft had one plane flown by Lt. Clifford accidentally collide
with another aircraft while launching and required last-minute repairs, still, he launched
25 minutes after to make a solo run.
The second wave approached from a northerly direction towards the Mar Grande Harbor.
Lt Hamilton and Lt Skelton dropped flares shortly before midnight and headed towards
the oil storage depots to bomb them.
Commanding the force, Lt. Hale came from the north lining up with the battleship Littorio,
alongside him was Lt. Torren-Spence and Lt. Bayley.
The latter was shot down on approach by the heavy cruiser Gorizia’s anti-aircraft guns,
both he and his co-pilot died.
Hale and Torren-Spence both launched torpedoes at the Littorio, with one successfully hitting
her on the stern.
Despite taking heavy anti-aircraft fire, both aircraft managed to pull away.
Behind them came Lt Lea launching a torpedo at Caio Duilio, hitting her on the starboard
side, blowing a hole in her hull, and flooding both of her forward magazines.
The final aircraft of the second wave flown by Lt Wellham coming over the town of Taranto
approached the flagship Vittorio Veneto launching a torpedo but missed.
His aircraft was heavily damaged by anti-aircraft fire but managed to limp back to the Illustrious.
Arriving 15 minutes late and alone on the scene was Lt. Clifford.
He attempted a dive-bombing attack on the Italian cruiser Trento facing the complete
attention of all the anti-aircraft fire.
He dropped his bombs, only to see them cleanly hit Trento without detonation.
Miraculously he was able to fly out of Taranto through the heavy anti-aircraft fire.
The British lost two planes, with two crew members taken prisoner and two killed.
The Regia Marina suffered significant losses.
The battleship Conte di Cavour had a 39 by 26-foot hole in its hull, 27 of her crew were
killed with 100 wounded.
She fell to the bottom of the shallow water with only her superstructure and main armaments
remaining above water, she would never see full service again.
The battleship Caio Duilio had a 36 by 23-foot hole but was saved before running aground.
The battleship Littorio had been hit by three torpedoes leading to considerable flooding
and the ship’s bows being totally submerged by the next morning.
32 of her crew died with many wounded.
Heavy Cruiser Trento was damaged by an unexploded bomb that tore a hole in one of her fuel tanks
taking two months to repair.
Destroyers Libeccio and Pessagno, both hit by unexploded bombs, required minor repairs
taking a month each.
It took four months to repair Littorio, seven months for Duilio with Conte Di Cavour never
seeing completion.
Two Italian aircraft were destroyed on the ground.
The seaplane hangars, oil depots, and harbor were severely damaged.
An estimated 15,000 rounds from shore-fired batteries and warships had landed in the city
of Taranto which lay in shambles.
The Italian fleet lost half its capital ships in one night; the next day the Regia Marina
was forced to transfer its undamaged warships from Taranto to Naples to thwart new attacks.
The balance of power swung firmly into British hands in the Mediterranean who now could operate
with much greater liberty, capable of splitting into two battle groups rather than sticking
as one at all times.
Prior to the attack on Taranto Aerial torpedo experts around the world believed torpedo
attacks against ships required water at least 75ft deep.
Taranto harbor had a depth of 33 ft and the British were able to innovate their methods
to compensate for this.
Isoroku Yamamoto ordered Lieutenant Commander Takeshi Naito to investigate the incident,
and he quickly flew to Taranto.
His report went directly to Yamamoto and he later spoke to Commander Mitsuo Fuchida, the
man who led the first wave of air attacks on Pearl Harbor.
While the attack on Taranto was not the match to ignite the Japanese plans for Pearl Harbor
it demonstrated the soundness of such tactics and cemented Japan’s resolve to go through
with its plans.
Prior to the attack on Taranto, Yamamoto’s proposal for an attack on Pearl Harbor met
with great resistance in both the military and naval circles of Japan, but after Taranto
support quickly grew for his plan.
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