Simulation outcomes place the carrier battle in three regions

Where is the new carrier battle most likely to occur, and could carriers end up in a gunfight?

Usually in the Java Sea; rare close encounters are possible, while the South China Sea approach gives Allied patrols and submarines the best warning.

In roughly fifty scenario runs, about forty battles developed in the Java Sea; the remainder split between Australia and Singapore. A rare run produced the close-range carrier gunfight posed by the viewer, but it was not the normal result. Approaches to Singapore often produced the worst Japanese results because patrol aircraft and submarine lines detected and shadowed the carriers early. Even with fewer Allied carriers, that warning made a British night strike more likely.