As long as their strike aircraft survive, they can contin ue to deliver weapons against a shore target. Although a carrier's magazine capacity is finite, she is far easier to replenish than any other ship. For example, a typical US carrier magazine accommodates about 2,000 tons of ammunition. Missiles spend most of their weight on airframe and fuel, so a similar tonnage buys far less total warhead weight. Moreover, there is no question of replenishing the arsenal ship's missile tubes at sea.
Carriers still offer an unmatched sustained capability.
For example, it is difficult to imagine any country sustaining an opposed occupation of the Spratly Islands in the South China Sea without the sort of air cover a carrier can provide. This presumably explains Chinese plans to buy carriers early in the next century. The great disadvantage of existing ships is probably their need for large crews and substantial maintenance facilities. As for patrol aircraft, numerous navies have requested surplus US P-3s. Dr Norman Friedman writes the bi-annual Naval Institute Guide to World Naval Systems, as well as a monthly column on World Naval Developments in Proceedings of the US Naval Institute.