Along with the Reid and Sigrist R.S.4 "Bobsleigh", the Gloster Meteor was engaged in a proof-of-concept experimental programme that proved in practice that the difficulties in rearward visibility and ejection outweighed the advantages of sustaining higher g effects.

In the early 1950s the adoption of a prone position cockpit in future combat aircraft designs appeared attractive for two reasons.

Secondly, aircrew can withstand greater inertial forces if not sitting upright, a vital consideration given the need for jet combat aircraft to manoeuvre at ever increasing speeds.

In order to establish the viability of a prone pilot cockpit, the RAF Institute of Aviation Medicine required a jet aircraft that could be flown in experimental flight tests.

[1] Following some 55 hours of flight testing over 99 flights, the results were inconclusive; although the prone position concept was feasible, the development of special aviation clothing (g-suits) offered a simpler solution to the problem of counteracting inertial forces, and the prone position Meteor was no longer needed.