The DF-26B allows China to target US Navy warships operating near regions China considers to be within its sphere of influence. This capability means that all those expensive US Navy warships—notably aircraft carriers—will be vulnerable to attack from the DF-26B. The DF-26B carries the nickname “carrier killer.”
I think they may be talking about littoral combat vs deep water navy excursions. Traditional navy wonks have been yearning for the old days of huge combat groups hunting each other in the Pacific. That style of combat is of course over, but the navy still hasn’t really grown out of it.
Our current navy is still big, expensive, and basically geared towards a world war, but without an imperial navy to do battle against. America can’t move away from our current figuration because for the last 60 years, it’s just been utilized for force projection, not actual combat. Plus, out of all the graft happening in the military industrial complex. The navy by far has been caught with its higher ups hands in the cookie jar.
The navy realized that littoral combat would likely be the future combat environment for the branch, but it’s response was a 100 billion dollar abortion. A LCS program that is basically non-functional at the best of times.
It’s the same reason the Air Force keeps pumping out new manned fighters every decade. The upper echelon of the Air Force are all former fighter pilots, so of course they aren’t going to invest in programs that may allow another class of officer to rise above their command. The Air Force won’t ever be able to truly invest in unmanned vehicles, because to them (all fighter pilots) the pilot is the only key to air superiority.