Sea Hurricanes and Fulmars were also outclassed by the aircraft of the Italian and German Air forces in the Mediterranean. They still prevented ships being sunk, indeed during Op Pedestal no ships were sunk by aircraft while they had a carrier escort. The key was breaking up the incoming raids making it easier for the ships to take out the individual aircraft and preventing coordinated strikes. The key to this was radar and fighter control. So the outcome is nowhere near as certain as your top trumps analysis would suggest.
Also I'm fairly sure all the aircraft involved were from the Japanese Navy who had an extensive range of land based attack aircraft. It would have been impressive if the Kido Butai had turned up as at the time they were on the way back from Hawaii, which is quite a long way from Malaysia. I doubt the PoW task group would have hung around waiting for them.
Have you got a source for your quote by Indomitable's Captain? I haven't come across it in anything I've read about her.
Biting the hand that feeds IT
