a bit more
CJ, thought some more about your message. Let me explain. The first aircraft I ever got on was a Bae 1-11 in ~1964. Simple looking thing, had to look to see the engines. Now an aircraft from the front is dominated by huge gaping engines and the wings are covered in slats, flaps, winglets, boundary layer augmenting bits etc. The cockpit is full of electronics and computers intermediate between the man and the machine. The VS is still the same old single sticky-up thing. Why no apparent innovation there ? The answers given above I think are to the effect that no innovation was necessary.