Some details on the likely air and naval forces that might be available to counter a German invasion
Forces used in Operation "Menace" (Invasion Of Dakar)
HMS Barham
Aircraft carrier: HMS Ark Royal
Battleships: HMS Barham, HMS Resolution
Heavy cruisers: HMAS Australia, HMS Cumberland, Devonshire
Light cruiser: HMS Dragon, HMS Delhi
Destroyers: HMS Echo, Eclipse, Escapade, Faulknor, Foresight, Forester, Fortune, HMS Fury, HMS Greyhound, HMS Inglefield
Escorts/patrol boats: HMS Bridgewater, Commandant Dominé, Commandant Duboc, Houduce, HMS Milford, Savorgnan de Brazza
Merchant ships: four Free French and one British
Transports: SS Westernland (Dutch ocean liner), SS Pennland (Dutch ocean liner), MS Sobieski (Polish ocean liner) and three more
101Royal Marine Brigade
Air Squadrons embarked on the Ark Royal
No 800 Sqn (Skuas), During the German invasion of Norway in 1940, Squadron aircraft shot down six He111s and along with (803) sank the cruiser Konigsberg. In the attack on the Konigsberg, 800 Sqdn provided 5 aircraft and 7 crews while 803 Sqdn provided 11 aircraft and 9 crews. (800) suffered 2 Skuas holed in their wings but these caused no major damage.
The (800) Squadron CO, Capt RT Partridge, RM was taken POW and four aircraft lost on an attack on the Scharnhorst. Two of these losses had been replaced by July, so it had an effective strength of 9 a/c.
In July 1940, the squadron was involved in the attack on the French Fleet at Oran. There were no losses to the squadron in this operation. 2 SM 79 bombers shot down off Sardinia in that month. *00 exchanged its Skuas for Fulmars April 1941
No 803 Sqn (Skuas), Credited with 9 aerial victories during Weserbung On the two squadrons return flight from the Konigsberg operation, while climbing through clouds, one of the Skuas of (803) went into a spin and crashed, killing the leader of (803)'s third section. Lt.BJ Smeeton, and his crewman Mid. (A) F Watkinson. For the period June-August 1940 it had a strength of 11 a/c. All the other aircraft of this squadron made it back to their base on the Orkneys. The sqn re-embarked HMS Ark Royal in May, and reformed in early October with 12 Fulmar, the squadron subsequently was transferred to HMS Formidable and saw service in the Eastern Mediterranean with that carrier, including to provide fighter cover for the Malta convoys, and during with Battle of Cape Matapan where it shot down 2 aircraft and damaged 2 others. The squadron withdrew to Dekheila after HMS Formidable was damaged during the Crete evacuation, and re-equipped with RAF Hurricanes.
No 810 Sqn (Swordfish),
No 820 Sqdn (Swordfish)
For the attack on the french Fleet at Mers el kebir, the British used the following
Operation Catapult – the attack on Mers el Kebir, was carried out some time earlier, in early July, and involved the following Royal Navy Order of Battle
HMS Hood – battlecruiser – Flagship of Force H
HMS Resolution – Revenge class battleship
HMS Valiant – Queen Elizabeth class battleship
HMS Ark Royal – aircraft carrier
HMS Arethusa – Arethusa class light cruiser
HMS Enterprise – Emerald class light cruiser
HMS Faulknor – destroyer
HMS Foxhound – destroyer
HMS Fearless – destroyer
HMS Forester – destroyer
HMS Foresight – destroyer
HMS Escort – destroyer
HMS Keppel – destroyer
HMS Active – destroyer
HMS Wrestler – destroyer
HMS Vidette – destroyer
HMS Vortigern – destroyer
Other fighter squadrons based in the Orkneys, Northern Scotalnd or on the Furious (the Home Fleet) (Note, this entry is incomplete...I have not yet completed all necessary research
No 807 Squadron (Fulmars) was formed at Worthy Down in September 1940 as a fighter squadron with Fulmar Is, three embarked on HMS Pegasus in December for fighter catapult operations till February 1941 after which the whole squadron embarked on HMS Furious for convoy duties.
In April 1941 the squadron was re-equipped with Fulmar IIs and joined HMS Ark Royal for Malta convoy duties in July and September, during which time 15 enemy aircraft were destroyed. It shared with (806) squadron, another probable destroyed and 4 damaged, and 4 with (808) .
Four squadron aircraft survived the torpedoing of HMS Ark Royal in November 1941 and flew to North Front, Gibraltar, where Fulmars and Sea Hurricanes joined the re-equipped squadron for convoys duties with HMS Argus.
No 808 Squadron (Fulmars) was formed at Worthy Down on 1 July 1940. The sqn received its carrier qualification from formation but was not actually embarked until November (it was however available) It was a premier fighter unit of the RN, and had its Fulmar Is replaced by the Fulmar IIs in October, before the squadron moved north to RAF Castletown in Caithness, to protect the Home Fleet's base at Scapa Flow. This was a brief assignment, and in the following month the squadron moved south to Donisbristle, where it joined HMS Ark Royal.
The squadron had an eventful time on the Ark Royal, claiming 19 victories (17 of them in a 4 month period) with No.807 Squadron in ten months. After arriving in the Mediterranean at the start of November the squadron was involved in attacks on Italian airfields on Sicily on 9 November and in the inconclusive action off Cape Spartivento on 27 November.