Jumbo Jet

Say what you will about the French, they know how to build an elephant:

http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Ribart_Elephant_triomphal.jpg

This one, proposed for the Champs-Élysées in 1758, had air conditioning, a spiral staircase, and a drainage system in the trunk.

The French government said no. There’s no accounting for taste.