first off, i too am a newbie and i also read a lot of things about a beginner rtf airplane. the choices i came down to were the t-hawk and aerobird. i chose the t-hawk and ordered it even though i could have gone to the local rc shop and got the aerobird. this is because the t-hawk has separate components versus the aerobirds all in one circuit board. plus you get 2 wings 2 batteries and 2 tails. i can also tell you it is TOUGH. while trying to get a handle on that coming at you- going away from you control reversal thing i dove my plane into the ground so hard it bounced 5 feet in the air. i went over, straightened the wing and launched it into the air with absolutely no damage. if i ever do manage to destroy it, the servoes, esc, and receiver can all go into another park flyer.