The Battle of Taranto
Dan Snow's History Hit
English - November 10, 2015 11:39 - 25 minutes - 39.1 MB - ★★★★★ - 3.6K ratingsHistory Homepage Download Apple Podcasts Google Podcasts Overcast Castro Pocket Casts RSS feed
Dan visits the Royal Naval Air Station Yeovilton, in Somerset, England to gain a unique insight into the Battle of Taranto. He talks to Lt. Simon Wilson, the Royal Navy’s lead Swordfish pilot, views some extraordinary documents and takes a flight in a Swordfish bi-plane.
The Battle of Taranto took place on the night of 11–12 November 1940 during the Second World War between British naval forces, under Admiral Andrew Cunningham, and Italian naval forces, under Admiral Inigo Campioni. The Royal Navy launched the first all-aircraft ship-to-ship naval attack in history, launching a small number of obsolescent biplane torpedo bombers from the aircraft carrier HMS Illustrious (R87) in the Mediterranean Sea.
Further information
Recommended reading: The War in a Stringbag
The companion short film which Dan presents is entitled ‘Taranto 75‘ you really don’t want to miss it!
Episode photos are available at historyhitpodcast.com/taranto75
Presented by Dan Snow @thehistoryguy
Produced by Dan Morelle @danmorelle
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