Indonesia Welcomes First Aircraft Carrier as Cost Debate Intensifies

Indonesia marked a naval milestone on Friday as its first aircraft carrier, the former Italian warship ITS Giuseppe Garibaldi, arrived at a naval base in North Jakarta's Tanjung Priok seaport. The 41-year-old vessel, capable of operating short takeoff and vertical landing aircraft as well as helicopters, was greeted with a military ceremony.

The ship is set to be commissioned into the Indonesian Navy next week as the KRI Gajah Mada, named after the celebrated 14th-century Majapahit military leader. Italy agreed in March to transfer the carrier, retired in 2024, as part of a broader defense engagement with Southeast Asia's largest economy. The gift spares Italy decommissioning costs while opening the door to potential deals on submarines and aircraft.

The acquisition makes Indonesia only the second Southeast Asian nation to field a carrier, after Thailand's HTMS Chakri Naruebet, commissioned in 1997.

President Prabowo Subianto's administration has prioritized military expansion, pursuing submarines, frigates, fighter jets and missiles. The government frames the carrier as a mobile command hub for helicopters, drones and maritime operations across the archipelago, and as a disaster-response asset. Prabowo has said it could carry up to 10 medium-sized helicopters and large quantities of water to combat forest and peatland fires that regularly blanket the region in haze.

However, the program has drawn scrutiny. The Finance Ministry approved $450 million in financing for 2025, but lawmaker TB Hasanuddin warned that retrofitting alone could reach 16 trillion rupiah, or about $900 million. Analysts question whether the vessel is necessary given fiscal pressures from costly initiatives and slowing growth.

Muhammad Fauzan Malufti of the Centre for Strategic and International Studies said the acquisition must rest on genuine operational needs and sustainment capacity, citing Thailand's carrier as a cautionary example of a ship largely confined to port. Military analyst Khairul Fahmi argued that submarines, frigates and asymmetric systems are greater priorities for protecting territorial waters, though he acknowledged a carrier could symbolize maritime ambition and serve multiple roles.