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.

U.S. Marine from Chicago flies in an AV-8B Harrier II as an incentive for reenlisting (B-Roll)

2nd Marine Aircraft Wing

Video by Lance Cpl. Madison Blackstock

May 10, 2023 | 1:20

U.S. Marine Corps Cpl. Daniel Sanchez, an aviation-operations specialist with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 542, prepares to fly in an AV-8B Harrier II at Marine Corps Air Station Cherry Point, North Carolina, May 10, 2023. After completing the prerequisite training, Sanchez was afforded the opportunity to fly in an AV-8B Harrier II based on his superior performance and as an incentive for reenlisting for another four years of service in the Marine Corps.

This B-Roll package contains footage of the following:
U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Thomas Brougher giving a flight brief to Cpl. Daniel Sanchez,
U.S. Marine Corps Staff Sgt. Detlev Yanez helping Sanchez put on flight gear,
Sanchez entering an AV-8B Harrier II, and
Brougher and Sanchez taxiing in an AV-8B Harrier II.

(U.S. Marine Corps video by Lance Cpl. Madison Blackstock) More