Reoptimization for Great Power Competition

“I’m extremely proud of the Space Force and all the good it has accomplished. But, as good as we are, as much as we’ve done, as far as we’ve come, it’s not enough. We are not yet optimized for Great Power Competition.”

~ Chief of Space Operations
Gen. Chance Saltzman

The establishment of the U.S. Space Force was a direct response to threats arising from Great Power Competition in the space domain. Nevertheless, our legacy roots leave us sub-optimized for the security environment confronting us today, and we must finish fine-tuning the service to continue meeting its National Defense Strategy responsibilities

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.

The space domain is no longer benign; it has rapidly become congested and contested.

We must enhance our capabilities, develop Guardians for modern warfare, prepare for the high intensity fight, and strengthen our power projection to thrive and win in this new era of Great Power Competition.

Video by Pfc. Jailene Bautista

USAF Airmen inoculate community members in New York

Federal Vaccine Response

Feb. 24, 2021 | 1:08

U.S. Air Force Airmen, with Urban Augmentation Medical Task Force-531, assigned to Air Education Training Command, 56th Healthcare Operations Squadron, 47th Operational Medical Readiness Squadron, 335th Expeditionary Medical Operations Squadron, 6th Logistics Readiness Squadron, 42nd Medical Group, 56th Medical Support Squadron, 82nd Medical Group, administer COVID-19 vaccines to community members at the state-run, federally-supported Medgar Evers College Community Vaccination Center in Brooklyn, New York, Feb. 24, 2021. U.S. Northern Command, through U.S. Army North, remains committed to providing continued, flexible Department of Defense support to the Federal Emergency Management Agency as part of the whole-of-government response to COVID-19. (U.S. Army video by Pfc. Jailene Bautista, 5th Mobile Public Affairs Detachment)