TRIESTE – The Giuseppe Garibaldi aircraft carrier is leaving the Italian Navy to join Indonesia’s fleet.
The $450 million sale agreement was announced in Jakarta during Indodefence 2025 and includes an extensive refit by Fincantieri. According to the shipbuilding group, the vessel still has 15–20 years of potential operational life.
The Indonesian project calls for the conversion of the historic unit into a platform dedicated to drones and unmanned vehicles, integrating 60 Turkish-made Bayraktar TB3. A dual-island configuration will also be adopted to improve flight operations. Currently, the Garibaldi can carry up to 18 aircraft and is equipped with a 110-meter hangar divided into three sections.
Negotiations were conducted between Fincantieri and Republikorp, Indonesia’s defense holding. At the end of August, Minister Rachmat Pambudy authorized foreign loans for the purchase, in addition to funds earmarked for transport and multirole helicopters. With this deal, Indonesia – already a key customer for the Italian defense industry with orders exceeding $1.6 billion – becomes the second Southeast Asian country, after Thailand, to operate an aircraft carrier.
Delivered to the Italian Navy on September 30, 1985 and built by Fincantieri in Monfalcone, the Garibaldi was classified as an aircraft-carrying cruiser to comply with the 1923 law banning aircraft carriers in the Italian fleet. With a displacement of 13,370 tons, it served as flagship from 1987 to 2011, taking part in missions ranging from Somalia to Operation Enduring Freedom.
