Reoptimization for Great Power Competition

GPC Key Decisions

USAF Case for Change

Air Force FAQ for Reoptimizing Great Power Competition

“We need these changes now; we are out of time to reoptimize our forces to meet the strategic challenges in a time of great power competition.”

~ Secretary of the Air Force Frank Kendall

The United States faces a time of consequence marked by significant shifts in the strategic environment. To remain ready, the U.S. Air Force must change.

In early 2024, the Department of the Air Force unveiled sweeping plans for reshaping, refocusing, and reoptimizing the Air Force and Space Force to ensure continued supremacy in their respective domains while better posturing the services to deter and, if necessary, prevail in an era of Great Power Competition. Through a series of 24 DAF-wide key decisions, four core areas which demand the Department’s attention will be addressed: Develop People, Generate Readiness, Project Power and Develop Capabilities.

Today, the Air Force once again finds itself at a critical juncture—an era of Great Power Competition marked by a new security environment, a rapidly evolving character of war, and a formidable competitor. This new era requires understanding its challenges and the attributes needed to succeed.

Embracing change is not a choice; it is a necessity. The Air Force must “reoptimize” into an enterprise prepared for high-end conflicts and long-term strategic competition.

CSO Training - Ready for Tomorrow

12th Flying Training Wing

Video by Benjamin Faske

Aug. 21, 2020 | 1:30

The 479th Flying Training Group is the U.S. Air Force's only training pipeline for combat systems officers. CSOs are trained to perform duties as electronic warfare officers, weapon systems officers, navigators, and special operations.

"WSO, EWO, Nav, and Special Operations. We may come from different backgrounds and have very specific roles, but one thing remains constant, we are all combat systems officers. We are a community deeply rooted in history, from the bombardiers and navigators of WW2, fighting side by side on bomber crews in the hostile skies of Europe, to the EWOs and WSOs flying over Vietnam. Our presence is just as vital today as it was then, and will continue to be long into the future. We are the linchpins to joint all domain command and control, as the Air Force transitions to a net-centric approach to warfare. We are the humans on the loop. Here at UCT, we forge tacticians that are trained and ready to face whatever obstacles tomorrow brings. From learning the fundamentals of sensor operations and weapons employment; to understanding how to defeat and jam adversary threat systems, to developing the tools needed to precisely navigate in some of the world’s most sensitive regions, UCT delivers. Our graduates are prepared for the battles of today and the ones that loom on the horizon. They are ready. Are you?" More