Italy’s Giuseppe Garibaldi Enters Indonesian Waters, Renamed KRI Sriwijaya

Italy's former aircraft carrier ITS Giuseppe Garibaldi crossed into Indonesian waters on September 16, 2026. Two Indonesian Navy frigates, KRI Brawijaya-320 and KRI Prabu Siliwangi-321, were dispatched to meet the carrier at sea and escort it toward Jakarta.

It is due at Tanjung Priok port on September 18. Senior officials from Indonesia's National Armed Forces and Ministry of Defense are scheduled to be there to receive it. On September 17, the Indonesian Navy announced a change: the carrier will be commissioned as KRI Sriwijaya, not KRI Gajah Mada as had been announced previously. That designation has been in circulation since August. The correction matters: KRI Sriwijaya is now official, and it makes the carrier Indonesia's first.

The name Sriwijaya refers to a maritime kingdom that controlled much of the Malay Archipelago between the 7th and 13th centuries. The hull itself entered Italian service in 1985 as ITS Giuseppe Garibaldi (C551), a light carrier built to operate aircraft and helicopters. The transfer to Indonesia was conducted as a government-to-government arrangement.

The carrier stopped in Colombo on its final leg toward Indonesia before crossing into Indonesian territorial waters. Brief stop. During the voyage from Italy it was accompanied by an Italian Navy escort.

According to Tempo, President Prabowo has directed that the carrier be adapted for disaster management, with plans to accommodate up to ten medium-class helicopters for firefighting and search and rescue.