Why contemporary US warships carry limited VLS magazines

Why do contemporary US Navy warship designs not carry more VLS cells?

Magazine size is connected to post-Cold War assumptions and established designs. Flight III's 96 cells are compared with earlier concepts recalled from memory as having larger magazines.

Flight III's 96 cells are compared with earlier concepts recalled from memory as carrying roughly 144 to 160. The answer relates smaller magazines to post-Cold War expectations and the long use of established designs. It argues that a smaller fleet places a greater burden on each ship's ammunition capacity. The Royal Navy is also used as an example of that pressure. The historical cell-count comparison remains a recollection in this exchange.