That is mainly because aircraft are much more expendable than pilots and combat operations can now be flown remotely by pilots stationed thousands of miles away from hostile fronts. Analysts predict that within the next decade or two, nations without the resources to compete with the U.S. In the development of sophisticated piloted naval aircraft will be able to launch hundreds of inexpensive drones without regard for how many are lost in combat (Crosby, 2007; Elgin, 2009). Large numbers of unmanned drones with offensive and "suicidal" capabilities could easily overwhelm even the most sophisticated multiple hostile aircraft tracking abilities of the U.S. Navy's manned air superiority aircraft (Crosby, 2007). Conclusion

On one hand, the apparent trend in contemporary military aviation foretells the obsolescence of some of the principal missions of U.S. naval aircraft. On the other hand, U.S. naval air operations will still rely substantially on aircraft in the meantime, although through a greatly reduced inventory of multiple-role aircraft performing all of the traditional functions...

The principal difference during the transition period to unmanned military aircraft in the air superiority and interceptor role is that much smaller variety of multi-role aircraft will fulfill all of the roles that formerly required a much wider range of aircraft comprised by naval air wings.
References

Crosby, F. (2007). The Complete Guide to Fighters & Bombers of the World. London,

UK: Hermes.

Elgin, B. "It's a Bird, It's a Plane, it's Pork!" Business Week; November 9, 2009: 46-47.

Jackson, R. (2002). The Encyclopedia of Military Aircraft. London, UK: Parragon.

Jackson, R. (2003). Modern Military Aircraft: Development, Weaponry, Specifications.

Edison, NJ: Chartwell.

Lima, R. "Shoulder to Shoulder: When the Weather in Vietnam Kept Most Aircraft

Grounded, the Navy Sent in the Grumman A-6." Smithsonian Air & Space; Vol.

24, No. 1, (May/June 2009): 33-37.