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: Attack Company Paratroopers Conduct CBRN and Urban Warfare Training During Swift Response 2025 in Lithuania

173rd Airborne Brigade

Video by Capt. Jennifer French

May 18, 2025 | 1:35

U.S. Army paratroopers assigned to Attack Company, 1st Battalion, 503rd Infantry Regiment, 173rd Airborne Brigade, conduct Chemical, Biological, Radiological, and Nuclear (CBRN) training at the Military Operations in Urban Terrain (MOUT) site in Pabradė Training Area, Lithuania, May 19, 2025, during Swift Response 2025. The training enhances readiness in contaminated environments while sharpening small-unit tactics, decision-making, and mission execution in dense urban terrain. Swift Response 2025 is part of the U.S. Army’s DEFENDER 25 series, a large-scale multinational exercise that reinforces NATO interoperability, readiness, and deterrence through joint forcible entry operations and multi-domain integration. The 173rd Airborne Brigade is the U.S. Army's Contingency Response Force in Europe, postured to deploy on short notice in support of NATO and U.S. European Command objectives. (U.S. Army video by Capt. Jennifer French) More