Tesla and the Flivver Plane

Neither electricians nor physicists have laughed at Nikola Tesla, though the general public may have done so. That he is an easily self-deceived inventor, that he didn't end war by his device outlined in 1898 to blow up battleships from a distance, that his claims to precedence over Marconi in the wireless transmission of intelligence were doubtful though his 1893 experiments were interesting, that his Wardenclyffe tower, blown down by the United States Government in 1917, accomplished little for science we may believe. But his basic patents on alternating current power paid him immense royalties for a long series of years and in the hands of the Westinghouse people defied all attempts to invalidate them. And most of his profits were put into further experimentation.

Tesla is now 72 years old. His announced invention of a real "flivver plane" compels attention. He says he has a device that is only eight feet in its greatest dimension,, that weighs only 500 pounds, that can rise from an open window on helicopter principles, that will carry two passengers aloft and can be built to sell for less than $1,000. If these specifications can be met — only a model has been built so far — then flying will be brought within the reach of the multitude and aviation will be revolutionized.

"Such stuff as dreams are made of?" Who knows? Nikola Tesla has always been a puzzle to fellow inventors. He will remain a puzzle to the end. Perhaps his practical weakness is that he has been and remains a puzzle to investors, who are not fond of puzzle-solving.