The final variant of the Avro 707 family was the two-seat 707C, originally conceived to perform delta wing orientation training for the Royal Air Force — four examples were ordered, though the production order was eventually cancelled with only the sole prototype, WZ744, completed. The 707C made its maiden flight on 1 July 1953 and was ultimately employed in research that did not involve Vulcan development. Its most substantial research contribution was to the development of fly-by-wire control systems — one of the first aircraft of its kind to be so fitted — and it was also equipped with a side stick controller. The two-seat 707C joined the Royal Aircraft Establishment in January 1956 and was involved in substantial research into fly-by-wire electrically signalled hydraulic flying controls, still flying in September 1966 when it achieved its full airframe time and entered enforced retirement. In a programme where so many aircraft ended in accidents or on the scrapheap, the 707C's legacy is quietly remarkable: it helped lay the groundwork for the fly-by-wire technology that is now standard on virtually every modern combat aircraft in the world.