India, June 15 -- Marking the end of a nearly four-decade long chapter, the Indian Navy retired its Sea King Bravo helicopters on Sunday morning with a ceremonial final flight from INS Shikra, the western naval command base in Colaba.

Procured between 1989 and 1990, the Sea King Bravo fleet was inducted into the Indian Navy for anti-ship and anti-submarine warfare operations. At its peak, the Navy operated around 20 of the helicopters, popularly known as "flying frigates" because of their ability to perform both roles: anti-ship and anti-submarine.

"When it was introduced it was an advanced chopper as far as avionics was concerned,'' said Captain (retired) Sanjay Karve, who flew the aircraft until his retirement in 2004.

The last Sea K...