In late September, the Italian fleet, including "Pola", made a sweep for a British troop convoy from Alexandria to Malta, but it made no contact with the British ships. On 1 November, Mussolini visited the ship in Taranto. "Pola" was present in the harbor at Taranto when the British fleet launched the nighttime carrier strike on Taranto on the night of 11–12 November, but she was not attacked in the raid. She and the rest of the fleet left for Naples the following morning. Another attempt to intercept a British convoy in late November resulted in the Battle of Cape Spartivento. The Italian fleet left port on 26 November and while en route to the British fleet, "Pola" and the battleship were attacked by Swordfish torpedo bombers from the carrier , but both ships evaded the torpedoes. The two fleets then clashed in an engagement that lasted for about an hour. According to some sources, the two 203 mm hits on the British cruiser which disabled one of her main battery turrets were fired by "Pola". Other authors state instead that "Berwick" was actually damaged by the main guns of "Pola"'s sister, the heavy cruiser "Fiume". Admiral Inigo Campioni broke off the action because he mistakenly believed he was facing a superior force, the result of poor aerial reconnaissance.