The aircraft was designed to meet Air Ministry Specification 33/27, issued by the Directorate of Technical Development (DTD) in December 1927 after the failure of three attempts by the RAF to break the absolute distance world record flying Hawker Horsley bombers.

[2] The pointed nose and sleek lines of the design gave rise to the nickname "Eversharp," after the American company producing mechanical pencils.

[3] Although other configurations were studied, after wind tunnel testing a single high wing was chosen, allowing a gravity feed from the fuel tanks.

[4] After correcting a few findings, Fairey transferred the aircraft to RAF operations on 7 December, and testing continued in preparation for the record attempt, including a 24-hour trial on 22–23 March 1929.

Either the barometric pressure had dropped significantly between Tunisia and Cranwell, leading them to believe that their altitude was greater than it was, or the altimeter had malfunctioned.

[12] From 6–8 February 1933, Gayford and his navigator Flight Lieutenant G. E. Nicholetts (FLt Betts had died in 1932, after complications from a medical procedure)[7] flew non-stop in the second aircraft, K1991, from Cranwell to Walvis Bay, South West Africa.

This was a world long-distance record of 5,410 mi (8,710 km) (the autopilot gave up partway, with the remainder of the flight under full manual control).

Updating work was started, but when it was decided to design a new aircraft instead,[15] Monoplane II was scrapped after a few months in storage.