Would an all-Bofors battery have saved Force Z?

Would an all-Bofors battery have saved Force Z?

No. Longer-range fire could alter how the attack developed, but it would not reverse the operational circumstances of the loss.

Bofors had a longer overall reach, allowing fire to affect pilots before they entered effective engagement range. That mattered particularly when fighters were absent from the outer defensive layer. Fighter protection would reduce the additional value of this earlier harassment, although the extra reach remained useful. An all-Bofors fit might have changed which sides the attackers approached. It is still rejected as a change that would have saved the force.