In 1949 when Lachmann returned to HP, he brought with him the idea to create a porous wing structure to "suck in" the turbulent layer of air over a wing, and so decrease aerodynamic drag. Initial experiments with a glove over a Vampire wing were successful, although initial data suggested that this could only be practically applied to a relatively straight wing, and so limited in military application.
H.P.103
In 1955 HP submitted designs for a new straight-wing laminar flow airliner as the H.P.102 (and a military derivative as the H.P.105), and a smaller test aircraft with laminar flow wings based on the Hunting Percival Jet Provost T.1: the H.P.103.
Initial results were so favourable that Sir Frederick HP wanted the H.P.102 to be brought into production without further testing, however he was unable to gain sufficient support. Instead the last production Jet Provost T.1 was allocated to become a test aircraft. A new centrifugal compressor was to be attached to the engine to provide suction, with new porous wings constructed with ducting to allow the upper surface boundary layer to be sucked into the wing. With the new wings, custom wingtip fuel tanks - different to those later designed for the Jet provost T.3 - would also have been fitted.
Meanwhile further testing determined that this method of boundary layer control could be applied to higher speed swept wings. With this information, and with the Jet Provost not able to be modified to be fitted with a swept wing, the H.P.103 project was cancelled before the airframe was modified.