The Wright brothers spent about $1,000 on the first plane
The U.S. government spent $50,000 on a rival design that never flew.
While Samuel Langley — well-funded, well-credentialed — was crashing his "Aerodrome" into the Potomac River, Orville and Wilbur Wright were quietly building their own wind tunnel in Dayton, Ohio. On 17 December 1903, their plane flew for twelve seconds over Kitty Hawk. Total budget: about a thousand dollars.
Editor's Note
Great breakthroughs almost never come from the best-funded team. They come from the most stubborn one.
