Indonesia Receives First Aircraft Carrier, Former Italian Navy Vessel

Indonesia has acquired its first aircraft carrier with the arrival of the former Italian Navy vessel ITS Giuseppe Garibaldi at Tanjung Priok port in North Jakarta on September 18. The 41-year-old warship was transferred by Italy after retirement in 2024 and will be renamed KRI Sriwijaya by the Indonesian Navy, after the historic maritime kingdom.

The vessel sailed from Italy on August 24, transited the Suez Canal and made several port calls before entering Indonesian waters, where it was escorted by Indonesian Navy frigates. Indonesia is now the second Southeast Asian nation to operate an aircraft carrier, after Thailand.

Unlike traditional carrier operations focused on power projection, Indonesia plans to use the ship primarily for Military Operations Other Than War, including humanitarian assistance, disaster relief, maritime security and logistics. Given Indonesia's geography across thousands of islands and frequent natural disasters, the carrier will serve as a mobile platform for deploying helicopters, drones and relief equipment.