The communication failure behind Force Z's missing fighter cover

Would Brewster Buffalo combat air patrols in Malaya have changed Force Z's fate?

Those fighters were already available in principle; the central problem was a communications failure that kept the requested fighter cover from being understood and arranged.

Australian and New Zealand Brewster Buffalo fighters were already in Malaya and designated to provide combat air patrol. The explanation turns on a misunderstanding over what the Navy meant by air support. An RAF officer understood the request as one for strike aircraft and said none were available, leaving Tom Phillips and his staff with the message that no aircraft could be provided. The Navy wanted fighter protection for Prince of Wales and Repulse, whose heavy guns were already sufficient to attack the proposed amphibious targets. Clear terminology mattered because the two services attached different meanings to the same request.