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.

B-Roll: Agile and Lethal: U.S. Army Demonstrates EDRE Capability

70th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment

Video by Spc. Rachel Hall

March 14, 2025 | 2:19

U.S. Army UH-60 Black Hawks with Alpha Company, 3rd Assault Helicopter Battalion, 501st Aviation Regiment, Combat Aviation Brigade, 1st Armored Division, flies to pick up troops assigned to 5th Squadron, 7th Cavalry Regiment, 1st Armored Brigade Combat Team, 3rd Infantry Division, for an Emergency Deployment Readiness Exercise (EDRE) from Lithuania to Camp Reedo, Estonia, March 15, 2025. An EDRE is a no-notice, rapid-deployment exercise designed to test a unit's ability to rapidly deploy forces and equipment to an emergency or battlefield. Task Force Iron conducts multinational training and exercises across Europe to enhance lethality and readiness while strengthening partnerships with NATO allies and regional security partners. The task force delivers combat-credible forces to V Corps, the U.S. Army’s only forward-deployed corps in Europe, ensuring rapid response and operational effectiveness in support of allied defense objectives (U.S. Army video by Spc. Rachel Hall and Pfc. Nathan Arellano Tlaczani) More