Reoptimization for Great Power Competition

GPC Key Decisions

USAF Case for Change

SecAF Memo

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.

James W. Trimble Lock and Dam (L&D 13)

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers-Southwestern Division

Video by Edward Rivera

Jan. 28, 2021 | 0:30

Formed by the completion of the Ozark-Jeta Taylor Lock and Dam and Powerhouse in 1969, Ozark Lake reaches 36 miles westward to the James W. Trimble Lock and Dam near Fort Smith, Arkansas. At normal navigation pool, Ozark Lake contains about 10,600 surface acres of water with 173 miles of shoreline. Formed by the completion of James W. Trimble Lock and Dam in 1969, John Paul Hammerschmidt Lake has approximately 120 miles of shoreline and 7,700 acres of surface water. Hammerschmidt Lake extends 26 miles west, about half in Arkansas and half in Oklahoma.

Ozark-Jeta Taylor Lock and Dam and James W. Trimble Lock and Dam are major units in the McClellan-Kerr Arkansas River Navigation System for improvement of the Arkansas River and its tributaries in Arkansas and Oklahoma. The navigation system was authorized by the River and Harbor Act of 1946 and modified by subsequent acts of Congress.

https://www.swl.usace.army.mil/Missions/Recreation/Arkansas-River/Ozark/Project-History/ More