I learned on an Avistar a long time ago. Had an OS .46 engine and an analog radio. (This was before 2.4ghz.) It was a solid plane, a pleasure to build and a dream to fly. I even bought another one to build better than the first using pinned hinges and reinforcing some parts with tristock, and glassing the wings.

In reality, any high wing trainer will help. I agree with most of the others. Get a quality balsa kit, not foam. Fly the hell out of it and if you crash, cut the covering off and fix it. The Avistar taught me more about repairing and flying RC planes than I thought possible.

I went from it to a Thunder Tiger Spirit 3D about 4 months later and never looked back.