"lunatic contraptions, and some of them worked"

"People escaped in gliders, hang gliders, microlites, and even hot-air balloons,' said Werner helpfully.  He was looking at me with some curiosity, trying to guess why I'd got Lange started on one of his favorite topics.

'Oh, sure,' said Lange.  'No end of lunatic contraptions, and some of them worked.  But only the really cheap ideas were safe and reliable.'

'Cheap?' I said.  I hadn't heard this theory before.

'The more money that went into an escape, the greater the number of people involved in it, and so the greater the risk.  One way to defray the cost was to sell it to newspapers, magazines, or TV stations.  You could sometimes raise the money that way, but it always meant having cameramen hanging around on street corners or leaning out of upstairs windows.  Some of those young reporters didn't know their ass from their elbow.  The pros would steer clear of any escapes the media were involved with.'

'The tunnels were the best,' pronounced Werner, who'd become interested in Lange's lecture despite himself."

-- Len Deighton, Spy Line