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Roadmap ahead: AFGSC releases new strategic plan “2020 Vision and Beyond”

  • Published
  • By 2nd Lt. Victoria Wright
  • Air Force Global Strike Command Public Affairs

Air Force Global Strike Command released its new strategic plan, “2020 Vision and Beyond,” Oct. 18, which provides a roadmap for the future and explains how the command will maintain its competitive edge with the reemergence of long-term strategic competition.

“The potential for conflict between the U.S. and major competitors is at its highest since the close of the Cold War, highlighted by new challenges and leveraged by modern capabilities,” said Gen. Tim Ray, AFGSC commander.

“2020 Vision and Beyond,” the largest redirection in the command’s 10-year history, provides an action and execution plan that will allow AFGSC’s Total Force team to reorient, reinvent and reimagine in order to build margin and adaptability into new programs.

The need for a clear way ahead is more prevalent now than ever with the rising tensions between Russia, China, North Korea, Iran and transnational violent extremism, and the increase in our adversaries’ nuclear capabilities and innovations. This plan directly aligns command forces more closely with the 2018 National Defense Strategy.

“The return of great power competition, following our extended focus on counter-terrorism operations, requires us to simultaneously focus on mission execution, readiness, and modernization while making our people a continuing priority,” Ray stated. “To enable our long-range strike capability, we must focus on key issues now, as if it was our last week of peace.”

As part of this effort, the culture of the command is also being addressed with three key focus areas: excellence, teams and people. Together, these areas highlight the command’s dedication to continue taking care of its Airmen while being the best possible warfighting team that is capable of integrating into the modern battlespace.

Also included in the strategic plan is a new command motto, “Certare Vel Morti,” which means “compete or die,” as well as new approaches to innovation, military assets, maintenance, staff relationships for supporting the warfighters and more.

This plan includes nine overall goals underpinned by data-driven innovation and execution:

1. Improve unit readiness and capacity

2. Maximize lethality to project power

3. Mature our integrated response force presentation

4. Reorient and retool staff to address enterprise issues

5. Modernize sustainment and security operations

6. Modernize weapon systems

7. Sustainment efforts empirically focused

8. Further develop our componency as the air component to U.S. Strategic Command

9. Build resilient Airmen, organizations and families

Each goal contains multiple lines of effort that will help achieve goal completion. These projects range from implementing a standardized improvement process for building capacity, to introducing new courses such as the Basic Action Officer Course and AO Leadership Course, as well as switching to a conditions-base maintenance approach rather than using a generalized time-period one for weapons systems.

“We are empowering every Airman in our command to compete to win. This plan encourages Strikers to know their part of the mission and execute it with the knowledge that their leaders, through the four-star level, has their back,” said Chief Master Sgt. Charles Hoffman, AFGSC Command Chief.

Every Airman will play a part in the strategic plan to provide the long-range precision strike force the nation needs, while ensuring the command maintains its leading edge in the current power competitions unfolding around the world.

“2020 Vision and Beyond” will act as the execution order, checklist and authority, as the AFGSC Team continues towards the command’s vision for the future.