Retiring S-3 Viking left a carrier ASW range gap

Should an aircraft like S-3 Viking return to cover modern carrier anti-submarine threats?

Yes, the long-range ASW role remains necessary, and its eventual replacement will probably be uncrewed.

The missing S-3 capability is operational rather than nostalgic. Viking supplied long-range carrier-based anti-submarine reach, while the related retirement of Intruder also removed a heavy long-range aircraft from the deck. Both left service on the expectation that future systems would inherit their work. Those replacements did not arrive as planned, so the fleet still needs to recreate the range, probably with uncrewed aircraft.