Complex sentence: A production order from the War Office was placed early in 1914, and a total of 40 were built to this specification, however the aircraft's speed made it an obvious candidate for entry to the Schneider Trophy competition.
Split into simpler sentences: A production order from the War Office was placed early in 1914, and a total of 40 were built to this specification. However, the aircraft's speed made it an obvious candidate for entry to the Schneider Trophy competition.