 Two of the three prototypes crashed during testing , but their loss did not materially affect the development of the aircraft as the first batch of Savages had been ordered on 6 October 1947 . The most significant difference between the XAJ @-@ 1 and the production aircraft was the revision of the cockpit to accommodate a third crewman in a separate compartment . The first flight by a production aircraft occurred in May 1949 and Fleet Composite Squadron FIVE ( VC @-@ 5 ) became the first squadron to receive a Savage in September . The squadron participated in testing and evaluating the aircraft together with the Naval Air Test Center ( NATC ) in order to expedite the Savage 's introduction into the fleet . The first carrier takeoff and landing made by the bomber took place from the USS Coral Sea on 21 April and 31 August 1950 , respectively . Many , if not most , surviving AJ @-@ 1s had their tails upgraded to the improved AJ @-@ 2 configuration . 
