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.

See Yourself in PHD - Modernization and Installation Department

Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division

Video by Marco Hinahon, Carol Lawrence, Esthela Mckenzie, Eric Osborne, Ryan Sandoval, Nichole Susanka

Dec. 1, 2025 | 1:13

The Modernization and Installation Department at Naval Surface Warfare Center, Port Hueneme Division maximizes the readiness and lethality of shipboard combat systems.

The department’s approximately 700 engineers, logisticians and technicians support the Navy’s state-of-the-art surface fleet platforms — everything from unmanned vessels to aircraft carriers.

They deliver rapid, innovative and cost-effective solutions that enhance operational readiness and warfighting capability, like their work bolstering the Vertical Launching System during the Navy’s groundbreaking Transferrable Reload At-sea Method (TRAM) rearming demonstration.

Installing and integrating high-tech combat systems like the world-famous Tomahawk takes top talent, and the availability integration/planning professionals within this group make sure the big guns are online and ready for action.

In short, the Modernization and Installation Department installs, integrates and innovates to uphold naval might. More