I too have wondered if Blue Jay is going to keep making kits. They have some of the best flying planes you can get and the prices are more than fair especially considering the quality of hardware they include. If they are getting out of the kit cutting business I wish they would let us know. There are a few other kits I would pick up. I have the Krafty 60 and a Loadstar in the boxes now.

As far as trainers go I pretty much learned to fly with a Little Stik with the symmetrical airfoil. I didn't know it was not a beginners plane. And I only had the most basic of instructions. Mostly I watched the trainer fly my plane for me. This was way before the buddy box system. After a lesson on the weekend I would go out by myself during the week and fly. I broke lots of props but had no major mishaps. This was about 1978. I have to the best of my knowledge built over 45 RC planes since I started. Several were my own designs. Thats not counting control line planes I built from about 11 years old. I am not an ARF person. Heck building is half the fun.