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.

A Look Inside the Cavitation and Erosion Testing at Carderock that Designs Our Future Fleet

Naval Surface Warfare Center Carderock Division

Video by Devin Pisner

June 5, 2024 | 1:55

Engineer Joel Hartenberger highlights the crucial role of Carderock's Model Fabrication Shop at the Naval Surface Warfare Center, Carderock Division in an Office of Naval Research project focused on cavitation erosion, June 5, 2024. The shop was responsible for inspecting and modifying a 15,000-pound nickel-aluminum-bronze hydrofoil with a 10-foot span and 7-foot chord length. Following precision machining, the HIFOIL undergoes testing in the Large Cavitation Channel at Carderock's Memphis Detachment, the world's largest variable pressure water tunnel. By analyzing pitting rates and cavitating flow data, engineers from Carderock's Computational Fluid Dynamics and Propulsors Division and Surface Ship Hydrodynamics Division, along with researchers from University of Michigan and University of Memphis, enhance Navy maintenance practices, reduce costs and advance propulsor design. Carderock's collaboration with these key partners helps ensure a maritime-dominant naval force ready for tomorrow's challenges. (U. S. Navy video by Devin Pisner) More