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I have reached October 1942 in a PBEM as the Japanese with all my carriers intact.
When all 8 are together I form them into 2 task forces of 4 carriers each (Shokaku and Zuikaku in different ones because of their radar) plus 11 escorts each (Kongo, Tone, CLAA and 8 DD's). One follows the other in same hex.
Is this the best configuration or is there a better one?
Many thanks in advance for comments.

I would check if your DDs are those with maximum numbers of heavy DP guns. I guess Jap DDs max-out at six heavy DP guns each. Prioritise the heavy DP guns over 25mm AA guns.

The main concern I would have with the tactic you describe is not with the numbers of CVs and their arrangement, it is with the tactic itself. You have all your "eggs" in one basket. Admittedly it is an indestructible basket, but one just the same. One thing that the Allied player needs to know in order to survive in any good shape by the end of '42 is to always know where the KB is.... If you have ALL CVs in the KB and if that position is known to the Allied player, he or she can easily be where your KB (Death Star) is NOT... which is very important. So you might think about this tactic in that light. If you don't see a problem, I don't see anything wrong with the setup. One factor that you might want to consider is speed. Yes I know that you said you have one following the other, but if you need to give chase you need your faster CVs in one TF so that pursuit can be at 9 hexes per pulse, not 8... The Kaga and Akagi have very differing top speeds....

I have had WITP since it was first released and it has had MANY improvements since, to include the entire AE package, so forgive me if this info is no longer relevant.
At some point, IIRC, it was stated that Carrier groups lose cohesiveness bonus with more ships and stop being as effective as if you only used 3 or 4 CV's, tops.
Kinda like over-loading a dump truck...at some point, dirt starts to fall out.
Too, I believe the more ships you have in a fleet, the higher the chance of turning ships running into each other, (a point often missed if you don't check your combat reports).

regarding m10bob's thoughts

See the last paragraph of manual 7.2.1.11 - the chance of strike 'uncoordination' is doubled if the # of planes based in the TF is > 200 + rnd(200).

The chance of collision seems to increase greatly as the # of ships approaches the max allowable (25 for an Air Combat TF.) I'd get nervous w/ > 18 chips in a CV TF.

Many thanks for the above responses.
So regarding coordination would it make sense to split the 8 carriers between 3 or 4 TF's, all in the same hex?

So regarding coordination would it make sense to split the 8 carriers between 3 or 4 TF's, all in the same hex?

No, you should be alright the way you have them, at least as far as coordination goes. You'd probably get away with them all in one TF, but as noted above there are other considerations. I don't think there's an 'optimal' way to use your carriers. What I'm saying is that no matter how you set them up (within reason) you'll have trade off's in this or that aspect.

One thing I like to consider is the use of Japans DD's. I prefer to have those with the best endurance accompany my CV's. That is to say those that have their ratings at 6000 or above. The last thing you want is to have short range DD's stopping to refuel when a carrier dual is about to occur. A lot is said about their AAA numbers, but I feel that their endurance and DC type and capacity must also be factored in as well. To me its about balance. Besides Japan's AAA will never approach that of the Allies in the mid to late game. I put more emphasis on how much CAP I can afford and how to configure said CAP. Its why I like the Japanese CVL's so much. Their complement is fighter heavy and they can provide that little extra to each TF. Just watch the speed factor as noted above.

Hope some of this helps, Ciao.

Many thanks again for the views.

Agree with rustysi about DD endurance. At the beginning Shiratsuyu/Hatsuharu classes (6000 endurance, you have 10 Shiratsuyu and 6 Hatsuharu if I remember correctly) and later in the campaign Akitsuki class (8300 endurance...I don't remember but in middle '44 I have...I think...uff...9?) are the ships.