Finished HH:Supernova In the East 4 Carriers replaced battleships. What replaces Carriers?

First off, if you haven’t listened to it, do so. Worth it
Supernova in the East part IV

Dan Carlin is a master storyteller and I was engaged all throughout. The shift in the hegemony of naval warfare from the Battleship to the Aircraft Carrier (and the aircraft of course) is fascinating.

Truly a largely unknown operational theater, the pacific front called for new tech and showed how the battleships were obsolete. the dreadnoughts of old that once dominated naval warfare were simply too cumbersome and vulnerable with the advent of aerial warfare.


His likening carriers to a hive of bees was particularly interesting. And of course a slew of boxing references. The recounting of the Battle of Midway was particularly interesting.
He posits that the arrival of the dive bombers (after the torpedo bombers were mostly ineffective and wiped out) at that precise moment when the Japanese carriers were resupplying was possibly the most important 15 minutes in military history.
10:20 AM, June 4, 1942
Truly a fascinating account.

But just as the battleship replaced its forebears, and was thusly replaced by the Aircraft Carrier, what will replace These massive (both in size and in cost) carriers?

Global Power projection is obviously important, but are carriers becoming increasingly uneconomical? What are the viable future alternatives

Besides this

That could be utilized in the future as these massive platforms age? At the cost of roughly 14 billion and 7 million a day to maintain, there have to be more cost effective alternatives.


Large numbers of smaller carriers?
Hypersonic land based missiles?

What evolves to replace the Supercarrier?