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 Matthew Oldham

Swift Response 16 Hohenfels Drop

7th Army Training Command

June 16, 2016 | 3:32

Soldiers from the 82nd Airborne Division and French 11th Parachute Brigade (11e Brigade Parachutiste) jump into a drop zone (DZ) at Hohenfels Training Area in Germany, June 15, 2016 during Exercise Swift Response 16. Swift Response 16 is one of the premiere military crisis response training events for multi-national airborne forces in the world, and is designed to enhance the readiness of the combat core of the U.S. Global Response Forces and to conduct rapid-response, joint-forcible entry and follow-on operations alongside Allied high-readiness forces in Europe.