Back in 1957, when P-51s were so cheap...

[p51]

You can't compare something's cost today v/s what it cost in the past. You have to adjust in % of mean incomes. For example, if someone old complains about how a Coke cost a nickel in the 1940s, you only have to remind them that a decent annual income in the late 1940s was just over $1000 dollars!
People can only think of the 'good old days' prices without considering you didn't make the amount then that you make now.

[Lynn Allen]

I remember reading somewhere that Col. Hess commander told him that if he crashed the F-51 it would go his service record as he was still active then, so another pilot did the chore for him.

[Saville]

You can't compare something's cost today v/s what it cost in the past. You have to adjust in % of mean incomes. For example, if someone old complains about how a Coke cost a nickel in the 1940s, you only have to remind them that a decent annual income in the late 1940s was just over $1000 dollars!
People can only think of the 'good old days' prices without considering you didn't make the amount then that you make now.

That's why I pointed out that the $1800 to get checked out in the P-51 and fly solo might as well have been a million dollars, given what I was making in the early 70's.

[Ruberneck]

Here's a link for a inflation calculator. Plug in some numbers. But things were different back in the day,most families could live on one income.
https://www.bls.gov/data/inflation_calculator.htm/

[exhaustgases]

You can't compare something's cost today v/s what it cost in the past. You have to adjust in % of mean incomes. For example, if someone old complains about how a Coke cost a nickel in the 1940s, you only have to remind them that a decent annual income in the late 1940s was just over $1000 dollars!
People can only think of the 'good old days' prices without considering you didn't make the amount then that you make now.

But you can compare wage vs cost.

I think it was 1968 or 69 my dad could have bought a base model no thrills Camaro for 2300. I know it was around 71 he was making around $7 per hour. So I use $6 Wage in 69, divide 2300 by 6 and
it would be around 383 hours to pay that off.
Now I'm guessing said car is around $60,000. now and use a $45. per hour pay check that would be 1333. hours to pay it off so like how many times more is the cost now?

Who cares what a dollar was worth then compared to now? It how much less your WAGE IS WORTH NOW.