First, welcome to RCU. Great place and you'll get a lot of good advice.

The plane you buy should depend on where you want to go in the hobby. The best advice you're likely to get is to find a local club, go pay them a visit, and find out what's out there. Learning to fly RC is harder than you might think, and trying to learn on your own is usually a long, expensive road, that involves a lot of crashes and repairs.

Here's a link to the AMA's website, and their "Club Locater" page, just plug in your Zip Code. AMA is a national RC organization that provides liability insurance and membership in the AMA is usually required to join a local club. Not necessary if all you want to do is fly small electrics in a local park, but if you think you might want to get into larger glow powered planes....
http://www.modelaircraft.org/templat...677786D06500E8

Now, if small electrics is all you're interested in, then there are a couple options. You can get a complete package with plane, radio equipment, motor, battery pack and charger for about $150. Your best bet is something like an Aerobird. The problem is, none of the equipment can be used in another plane if you move on to something else.

You could also buy the equipment separately and get something like a GWS Slow Stick, separate radio equipment, battery pack and charger. That way you can buy stuff that CAN be used in your next plane.

Best of luck in whatever you choose.
Dennis-