The facilities were fully transferred to the Navy on 9 June 1985, and the naval air station was initially commissioned INS Rajali II.

On 26 March 2009, the base was renamed and commissioned as INS Parundu, for the Tamil word for an eagle.

It is primarily used by the navy as a reconnaissance station to monitor the South East Bay of Bengal, the northern Indian Ocean, the Gulf of Mannar and the Palk Strait.

[5] The primary units based at INS Parundu are Indian Naval Air Squadrons (INAS) that operate HAL Chetak helicopters and Islander reconnaissance aircraft.

Besides upgrading the runway, the Navy has installed dedicated facilities to operate UAVs from the air station.