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.

Flight Testing: Validating the Credibility of the Nation's Sea-Based Strategic Deterrent

Strategic Systems Programs

Video by Courtesy

Sept. 1, 2023 | 6:36

WASHINGTON (Sept. 28, 2023) - U.S. Navy's Strategic Systems Programs (SSP) leaders highlight the importance of SSP's flight testing program as a critical part of the cradle-to-grave responsibility for the nation's vital sea-based strategic deterrence mission. Flight testing programs include ground-based pad-launch testing in support of development, as well as submarine-launched flight testing to verify the performance, accuracy, and effectiveness of the Submarine Launched Ballistic Missile (SLBM) Trident II (D5LE) strategic weapon system (SWS) aboard the Navy's Ohio-class Fleet Ballistic Missile Submarine (SSBN). Submarine launched testing includes the Demonstration and Shakedown Operation (DASO) which is the end-to-end certification of the weapons system, the crew, and the SSBN; the Commander's Evaluation Test (CET) which establishes initial SWS performance, accuracy, and reliability and informs U.S. Strategic Command objectives within the scope of the nation's deterrence strategy; and, the Follow-on Commander's Evaluation Test (F-CET) which detects any changes in SWS performance. All flight testing is an opportunity to visually prove the overall success of the system. SSP oversees the Sea Based Strategic Deterrence 2084 (SBSD 2084) mission. (U.S. Navy Video by Luke Land) More