Indonesia's new aircraft carrier: how urgent is it?

Bogor, W Java (ANTARA) - Tuesday, October 20, 2026, marks two years since President Prabowo Subianto and Vice President Gibran Rakabuming Raka were sworn into office on October 20, 2024.

Many milestones have been achieved during their first two years in office, but much domestic work remains to be addressed.

They also face increasingly complex geopolitical challenges at the global and regional levels, requiring Indonesia to make effective use of diplomacy to safeguard its national interests.

One notable achievement has come in defense and security. Among the developments drawing widespread public attention is the Prabowo-Gibran administration’s success in acquiring the aircraft carrier ITS Giuseppe Garibaldi as a grant from Italy.

The vessel, now officially part of the Indonesian Navy (TNI AL) fleet as KRI Sriwijaya-100, has made Indonesia the second ASEAN member after Thailand to operate an aircraft carrier.

President Prabowo Subianto has said the vessel will support disaster-response missions in Indonesia. In recent months, several regions have been hit by forest and land fires amid a severe dry season.

During a limited meeting on disaster-response developments held by videoconference in Jakarta on September 7, 2026, Prabowo said the vessel would be refurbished as a helicopter carrier and a platform for drones.

The ship is expected to accommodate up to 10 medium-class helicopters. The helicopters could include models such as the Black Hawk and Mi-17, which can each carry about four to five tons of water.

Prabowo said that capacity would strengthen the government’s response to forest and land fires, particularly when numerous hotspots emerge.

Beyond the disaster-response role planned for KRI Sriwijaya-100, however, another question remains: Given Indonesia’s actual needs, is it urgent for the country to own and operate an aircraft carrier?

Defense analyst Muhammad Teguh Ariffaiz Nasution of Horizon Indonesia says there is no pressing need for Indonesia to procure and operate an aircraft carrier at this time.

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Greater priority for TNI AL

Teguh views several areas should instead receive greater priority for the Indonesian Navy.

First, maritime patrol. Indonesia should enhance maritime domain awareness across its vast maritime territory through regular patrols supported by ground-based coastal radar, aerial surveillance using maritime patrol aircraft and UAVs, and other maritime surveillance systems.

Second, undersea sensing. Multiple foreign UUVs have reportedly operated in or been detected in Indonesian waters, highlighting Indonesia’s limited undersea detection and sensing capabilities.

Building a more comprehensive network of underwater sensors, potentially including fixed seabed sonar systems, could significantly improve Indonesia’s ability to detect and monitor underwater intrusions by foreign actors.

Third, TNI AL should modernize its escort, submarine, patrol, amphibious and support fleets.

In this regard, Teguh argued that the Navy still operates a number of aging warships that require urgent replacement or major modernization.

“Frigates, corvettes, fast attack craft and submarines form important components of the Indonesian Navy’s combat and maritime security capabilities, yet many remain limited in capability and numbers,” he said.

Therefore, investment in these capabilities arguably represents a more immediate priority than acquiring an aircraft carrier.

Although an aircraft carrier is not an urgent acquisition priority, Teguh said it could still benefit the Navy and Indonesia's defense capabilities, provided the government develops a coherent Concept of Operations (CONOPS) for its use.

“I believe the main challenge in operating the carrier will depend less on whether TNI AL can provide enough fuel and supplies to keep it at sea,” he said.

Teguh said the more fundamental challenge is developing a coherent CONOPS defining the carrier’s purpose, how it will be employed, what force structure would be needed to support it, and what organizational and doctrinal adaptations would be required.

This raises another question: What will be the carrier's primary wartime function and secondary peacetime roles?

Aircraft carriers are, by nature, highly versatile platforms. However, treating the carrier as a “Swiss Army knife” for a wide range of ad hoc missions could result in an incoherent concept of employment.

It is therefore important for the Indonesian Navy to first determine the ship's primary operational function and then identify its potential secondary roles.

If the carrier is intended primarily as a humanitarian assistance and disaster relief (HADR) platform, Teguh says it could operate a substantial helicopter force.

“Indeed, statements from Indonesian Navy officials have suggested that the carrier could initially be geared significantly toward HADR,” he said.

President Prabowo and the Indonesian Navy chief of staff have said the carrier could help combat forest fires, potentially serving as a mobile base for more than 10 helicopters from the Navy, Air Force and Army.

“HADR would be a useful and highly visible role for the carrier, particularly given Indonesia’s exposure to natural disasters and its geography as an archipelagic state,” Teguh said.

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