>>63883714 (OP)
Considering China doesn't currently field (operational) carrier stealth fighters, the US Navy has them beat, and don't give me any of that horseshit about 'oh hurr durr they conducted test flights of J-35 on da carrier', who cares? Until they are fielded in an operational, combat ready capacity they are useless for carrier ops.
The US Navy has years of carrier warfare experience, and the F-35 (while still young) has seen worldwide service, and currently seems to be the best multi-role carrier fighter. Dont get me started on the F-18, it is essentially the perfect light-medium fighter. However, it would be better if a bit bigger with longer range, which is why I wish the F-14 was in service.
I will give the credit to China for having an larger multi-role aircraft, the loss of the F-14 was really a step back, and I doubt its capabilities will ever be deemed as important as they were. Modern A-A combat is almost exclusively with BVR missiles, anything else generally means one of the pilots fucked up (or both). In 2025, no enemy aircraft should get within range of cannons, or even further, AIM-9 type (or similar) weapons. Many designers may find shorter endurance more appealing as it allows more interior space for weapons and electronics, but without range effective screening of the carrier group is severely compromised. Ship based air defenses cant do everything, some things need to be prevented from launching altogether.
