Indonesian Navy begins preparations to receive the Garibaldi aircraft carrier

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Indonesian Navy prepares to operate the Garibaldi aircraft carrier

Just weeks after the Italian government’s approval of the donation was confirmed, the Indonesian Navy has begun the necessary preparations to receive and operate the aircraft carrier Garibaldi. The vessel previously served with its Italian counterpart and is set to become a further link strengthening defence ties between the two countries. The development follows the release of a video showing a runway outline replicating the carrier’s flight deck at a naval base, where the pilots expected to operate from the ship in the future may already be training.

Regarding this development, a report by Fauzan Malufti states that the photographs were taken at Juanda naval air base, home to the Indonesian Navy’s Squadron 100. Focused on anti-submarine warfare duties, the unit mainly operates AS565 Panther helicopters. This platform is among those expected to form part of the Garibaldi aircraft carrier’s embarked air wing. It is also rumoured that the ship will be renamed KRI Gajah Mada, after the 14th-century military leader and statesman.

Analysts have indicated that the runway painted at the base measures approximately 180 metres long and 33 metres wide. Its outline corresponds with that of the former Marina Militare flagship, although there are minor inaccuracies in the placement of the lifts. This suggests that the work was intended to create a temporary simulated deck for pilot training, allowing the Indonesian Navy to become familiar with the layout while preparing a more advanced facility.

Although an official handover date for the ship to the Indonesian Navy has yet to be announced, Jakarta is reportedly hoping to receive it around Armed Forces Day, celebrated on 5 October. If confirmed, this would mean a faster timetable than that originally envisaged by Italy when it approved the donation, which had been planned only for next December.

Whenever the transfer takes place, the aircraft carrier will still require substantial modernisation and re-equipment work to adapt it to modern operating environments. It should be remembered that the Italian government will donate the ship without equipment that would classify it as an offensive platform, in order to remain within the legal restrictions in force in Rome. This will consequently limit its capability in complex operations. As previously reported, the Indonesian Navy has stated that the Garibaldi will be used solely for emergency assistance missions during natural disasters and other humanitarian operations throughout its remaining 15 years of service life.

Indonesia’s efforts to strengthen its Armed Forces

It is worth noting that the Garibaldi aircraft carrier to be incorporated by the Indonesian Navy represents one of several elements in a broader process involving new aircraft and ships acquired from its leading European partners to consolidate Indonesia’s military capabilities.

In the first of these areas, the Asian country recently held a ceremony displaying the first 6 of its 42 new Rafale F4 fighters purchased from France. The order is divided into 30 single-seat aircraft and 12 two-seat variants. Images released from the event showed the aircraft alongside mock-ups of Meteor missiles and Hammer bombs, providing an indication of their future armament.

At the same event, held at Halim Air Base east of Jakarta, Indonesia also displayed its fleet of 6 Falcon 8X aircraft, including examples received between 2023 and 2024. Two A400M aircraft were also visible in their role as heavy transport platforms, while the occasion was used to present a new long-range GM400 radar system manufactured by France’s Thales to the public.

With regard to relations with Italy, the Garibaldi aircraft carrier donation by the Italian government could pave the way for Indonesia to award contracts worth up to 1.530 million euros. This had been cited months earlier as one of the reasons for not pursuing a direct sale of the vessel, as proposed by members of the Italian legislature. Options under consideration include new DGK-type submarines built by Drass, M-346 trainers developed by Leonardo, and new maritime patrol aircraft.

This would be added to the recent delivery of multi-purpose patrol vessels built by Fincantieri. These are Thaon di Revel-class units, for which Jakarta invested more than 1.250 million dollars. As previously reported, the company completed delivery of the second vessel of the class in December 2025, the KRI Prabu Siliwangi-321, following the transfer of KRI Brawijaya-320 in July of the same year.

Images used for illustrative purposes