Short answers, pulled from the story.
The Battle of Taranto took place on the night of the 11th and the 12th of November 1940. The first wave of aircraft left HMS Illustrious just before 21:00 hours on the 11th, and the last aircraft landed back aboard at 02:39 on the 12th.
Twenty Swordfish biplane torpedo bombers ultimately carried out the attack. The operation launched 21 aircraft in two waves, but one turned back when its auxiliary fuel tank detached, reducing the second wave from nine to eight aircraft.
Three Italian battleships were crippled: Conte di Cavour, Duilio, and Littorio. Conte di Cavour sank to the harbour floor and never returned to service; Duilio was repaired in seven months; Littorio was repaired and fully operational within four months.
Taranto harbour was only about 39 feet deep, far below the 75 feet most navies considered the minimum for aerial torpedo attacks. British engineers fitted a wire-drum device beneath each aircraft’s nose; when the torpedo was released, tension in the wire pulled up the torpedo’s nose, forcing a flat belly-flop entry rather than a steep dive that would bury it in the mud.
Japanese Lieutenant Commander Takeshi Naito flew to Taranto after the battle to study it firsthand and later discussed his findings with Commander Mitsuo Fuchida, who led the Pearl Harbor attack on the 7th of December 1941. A group of Imperial Japanese Navy officers also visited Taranto in May 1941 for detailed discussions with Italian counterparts.
Two Swordfish aircraft were shot down. The crew of the first, Lieutenant Commander K. Williamson and Lieutenant N. J. Scarlett, were taken prisoner. The crew of the second, Lieutenant G. Bayley and Lieutenant H. Slaughter, were both killed.