Supermarine Scimitar: A Deadly Beast

At the end of World War II, the Royal Navy was interested in a "flexible deck" concept, in which aircraft carriers would have a "soft" deck to allow aircraft to land without undercarriage. Take-offs would be performed on a catapult trolley.
Then, the Vickers Supermarine 505 was quickly replaced in 1948 when the Royal Navy concluded spring decks were a bad concept and that the replacement aircraft should have an undercarriage after all.
Supermarine quickly developed the 508, which maintained the V-tail and two Avon engines of the 505, but with tricycle landing gear. The 508 prototype flew in 1951, and a second, upgraded version followed in 1952. However, it had long been understood that straight wing jets were soon becoming obsolete in first-line service, and that if the design was to have a future, it would need to be changed to a swept wing design with transonic capabilities.
Another test aircraft, the Type 525, was developed, which not only included the improved wing configuration but also eliminated the V-tail in favor of a more conventional layout. This first one flew in April 1954, and it showed far more promise than its straight-wing predecessors. Flight tests and carrier landing trials proved that the aircraft had potential, but it would not make a very good fighter because its performance dropped off over 25,000 feet.
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