In 1926 a proposal was made that the RAF should attempt a non-stop flight to India. The chosen vehicle for this attempt was the Hawker Horsley, then entering RAF service as a day and torpedo-bomber. Three unsuccessful attempts were made with the Horsley and the Air Ministry decided to obtain a purpose-built long-range aircraft to make a new attempt. The Fairey Long-Range Monoplane was the result.

A clean, high-wing cantilever monoplane of low wing loading, it was of composite construction and fabric-covered. The high-efficiency wing, incorporating a triangulated-tube internal bracing system devised by Hollis Williams, also contained tanks for more than 4,546 litres of fuel. In this aircraft (J9479) Sqd Ldr A. G.Jones-Williams and Flt Lieut N. H. Jenkins flew from Cranwell, Lincolnshire to Karachi, recording the first non-stop flight between Britain and India, but failing to beat the world long-distance record. This aircraft was lost in a second long-range attempt, resulting in the construction of a new aircraft which differed only in detail and by the addition of an autopilot.

In this, during the period 6-8 February 1933, Sqd Ldr Gayford (with Flt Lieut G. E. Nicholetts as navigator) flew non-stop from Cranwell to Walvis Bay, South West Africa, creating a world long-distance record of 8,544km. Only six months later this record was captured by France.