THE COLLIER TROPHY GOES TO "the greatest achievement in aeronautics or astronautics in America" during the preceding year. One year it went to Chance-Vought's F8U Crusader, a just-launched U.S. Navy fighter. Fine choice, but the right one? After all, there was another aircraft that also first flew in 1955, Cessna's Model 172 Skyhawk, a Mach 0.17 (125 mph) performer versus Crusader's Mach 1.2. And yet that and its other modest numbers, including a base price of $8,750, made Cessna's new low-tech model an instant hit. Why?
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