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 Corps Maj. Matthew Andrews with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 312 speaks on distributed aviation operations in Finland

2nd Marine Aircraft Wing

Video by Cpl. Christopher Hernandez

March 14, 2024 | 4:15

U.S. Marine Corps Maj. Matthew Andrews, a native of Wisconsin and an F/A-18 Hornet pilot with Marine Fighter Attack Squadron (VMFA) 312, 2nd Marine Aircraft Wing (MAW), speaks on conducting distributed aviation operations (DAO) in Oulu, Finland, during Exercise Nordic Response 24 at Andenes, Norway, March 14, 2024. Exercise Nordic Response 24 is an opportunity for the 2nd MAW to refine the DAO warfighting concept, which focuses on generating aviation combat power through the coordinated employment of aviation squadrons, command-and-control agencies, aviation logistics, and aviation ground-support units disaggregated across the battlefield that challenges adversary targeting efforts. Exercise Nordic Response 24 is designed to enhance military capabilities and allied cooperation in high-intensity warfighting scenarios under challenging arctic conditions, while providing U.S. Marines unique opportunities to train alongside NATO allies and partners. (U.S. Marine Corps video by Cpl. Christopher Hernandez) More