The tyranny of the rocket equation mostly - parachutes are light in comparison. They could use a burn to handle the deorbit or a but that would add more mass wh

The tyranny of the rocket equation mostly - parachutes are light in comparison. They could use a burn to handle the deorbit or a but that would add more mass which requires adding more mass. The "more modern" alternatives would be heavier and depend upon more systems. Even if dealing with futuristic assumptions like say electromagnetic in atmosphere flight and battery density/reactors good enough to handle reentey braking for a reduction of net reaction mass a parachute would have a place as a backup plan.