During the late 1940s, in the face of the emerging Cold War scenario, the RAF came to recognise that it would urgently require the development and procurement of fighters equipped with features such as swept wings; this need was felt to be so pressing that they were willing to accept interim fighter aircraft while more capable fighters would continue to be pursued. In 1950, the outbreak of the Korean War and Britain's heavy involvement in this conflict led to a flurry of orders being issued; in particular, the RAF felt that a pair of proposed fighter aircraft from Hawker Aircraft and Supermarine were of high importance and thus placed orders for these proposed fighters 'off the drawing board' in 1950. The proposed Supermarine design was designated as the "Type 541", which was essentially an advanced development of the earlier Type 510 experimental aircraft.