Surviving Force Z could give ABDA a stronger battle fleet

How much longer might Force Z survive if it had a carrier?

Carrier fighters could disrupt the initial attacks, leaving Prince of Wales and Repulse available to anchor a stronger ABDA force and compel a larger Japanese response.

The long-range torpedo bombers attacking Force Z lacked fighter escorts. Carrier fighters could break up those attacks, while radar warning could help bring land-based fighters into the defense. If Prince of Wales and Repulse survived, ABDA's cruisers and destroyers could assemble around them. Japan would need a force larger than the cruiser group that defeated the historical ABDA cruiser command. A major Japanese deployment might draw American carriers south to join the British. Beyond that, the counterfactual remains open because both sides could change their deployments.