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.

Walking Tour of Montgomery Locks and Dam (Closed Captioned)

U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District

Video by Michel Sauret

Dec. 15, 2023 | 8:37

Join Jenna Cunningham, the resident engineer for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District, on a walking tour of the Montgomery Locks and Dam on the Ohio River near Monaca, Pennsylvania.

Montgomery is one of three navigation structures on the Ohio River planned for major reconstruction upgrades as part of the Upper Ohio Navigation Project, a multi-billion-dollar construction project that will replace locks at Emsworth, Dashields, and Montgomery locks and dams. The project at Montgomery will replace the auxiliary chamber, measuring 56 feet wide by 360 feet long, with a lock measuring 110 feet wide by 600 feet long.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers started constructing Montgomery Locks and Dam in 1932 and finished in 1936. The project became operational June 1936. The facility will undergo major reconstruction to enlarge the auxiliary lock into a 600-foot chamber as part of the Upper Ohio Navigation Project. Montgomery is located at river mile 31.7.

Pittsburgh District’s 26,000 square miles include portions of western Pennsylvania, northern West Virginia, eastern Ohio, western Maryland, and southwestern New York. It has more than 328 miles of navigable waterways, 23 navigation locks and dams, 16 multi-purpose flood-control reservoirs, 42 local flood-protection projects, and other projects to protect and enhance the nation’s water resources infrastructure and environment.

(U.S. Army Corps of Engineers Pittsburgh District video by Michel Sauret) More