The prototype flat wagon was produced by Shildon railway works in January 1964, with 100 production wagons turned out later that year from Ashford railway works. The first revenue-earning train ran between York Way/Maiden Lane in North London and Gushetfaulds in Glasgow on 15 November 1965. Soon adopting the Freightliner name, the first single-shipper train was operated on 20 August 1968, hauling specially-designed 30-foot containers carrying parts for Ford Escort cars that were destined for assembly in plants on the European mainland.