The Fort was originally designed as an advanced flying trainer and in 1940 orders were placed for 200 to be built for the British Commonwealth Air Training Plan.

[1] The Fleet 60 was designed as a monoplane with a low elliptical wing and a raised rear cockpit.

Production was delayed, however, as the first Royal Canadian Air Force (RCAF) model was not flying until 18 April 1941.

Pilot trainees found the Fort relatively easy to master, thereby making it unsuitable for transition to combat aircraft (e.g., Hawker Hurricane).

Also, the RCAF decided that pilots who had soloed in Fleet Finches and de Havilland Tiger Moths could proceed to Harvards without training on Forts.