RAF Boscombe Down as well as to begun preliminary carrier trials. On 19 June 1950, the prototype conducted the first deck landing by a turboprop aircraft on , piloted by Lieutenant Commander G. Callingham. On 6 July 1950, the second prototype took to the skies, joining the flight test shortly thereafter. As a result of changes to the operational requirements, this aircraft featured numerous changes from the first prototype, such as a third canopy for an additional crew member and an extended bomb bay. To accommodate the latter, the radar randome had to be repositioned rearwards; the first prototype was modified to reflect these changes for the aerodynamic trials. In May 1952, the first prototype returned to Boscombe Down to conduct deck landing assessments and trials, having been configured to represent a production-standard aircraft by this point. Changes included the repositioning of the main landing legs rearwards by 12 inches. Following a full series of handling trials, further carrier trials were performed aboard . On 13 March 1951, Fairey received an initial over for 100 Gannet AS.1s from the British Government; this had been placed as a 'super-priority' on account of the Korean War. In 1953, quantity production of the type commenced. On 9 June 1953, the first production Gannet performed its initial flight from RAF Northolt and was put to work in the latter stages of the flight test programme. One serious flaw encountered during the later stage of trials was instances of compressor stalls, the type was grounded for two months while the propeller control system was modified accordingly. One early production aircraft appeared at the 1953 Society of British Aerospace Companies (SBAC) display at Farnborough. On 5 April 1954, four Gannets were formally handed over to the FAA at RNAS Ford. Further development The development of several variants of the Gannet started relatively early. On 16 August 1954, the first Gannet T.2, a dedicated trainer variant made its initial flight; it was furnished with dual controls in the forward cockpits, with a retractable periscope for the second cockpit, while the radar apparatus and scanner equipment were deleted. Production of the Gannet was shared between Fairey's factories at Hayes, Middlesex and Heaton Chapel, Stockport / Manchester (Ringway) Airport. During 1954, production commenced at Heaton Chapel, the first aircraft from this production line flew on 5 October of that year. That same month, tropical trials were conducted in Khartoum.