Reoptimization for Great Power Competition

GPC Key Decisions

USAF Case for Change

SecAF Memo

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.

UNITAS: 4th Recon Battalion Interview

U.S. Marine Corps Forces, South

Video by Sgt. Colton Garrett

July 19, 2023 | 3:26

U.S. Marine Corps Capt. John Tucker, an intelligence officer with 4th Reconnaissance Battalion, 4th Marine Division, gives an interview during UNITAS LXIV at Cartagena, Colombia, July 19, 2023. During UNITAS, reconnaissance and special operation force Marines from partner and allied nations conducted multilateral special operations training consisting of room clearing, visit board search and seizure, jungle patrolling, low-level static line jumping, small arms, and helicopter rope suspension tactics. UNITAS, hosted by Colombia this year, is the world’s longest-running annual multinational maritime exercise that focuses on enhancing interoperability among multiple nations and joint forces during littoral and amphibious operations in order to build on existing regional partnerships and create new enduring relationships that promote peace, stability, and prosperity in the U.S. Southern Command’s area of responsibility. Tucker is a native of New York, NY. (U.S. Marine Corps video by Sgt. Colton K. Garrett) More