Modifying a micro car has been well documented. Look here: http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=84771 and check out the threads listed under 'RC Car Conversions'. There are a lot of possible mods to get enough range and power from these little units. Do some reading, solder up a few parts and you are ready to go. The only draw back to these is they have limited range, limited number of functions, and almost all are 'bang-bang' systems (where controls are simply on or off, banging from one side to the other). I prefer real, proportional micro R/C gear myself, but for a school project, you may find it is just the ticket.

If you already have access to a real aircraft transmitter, you can get the RFFS or JMP RX for under $100. These radios are proportion control, 3 (or more) channels, and use actuators (kind of like in the micro cars)

Some of the motors in these little cars are quite adaptable to what you want to do, although most require making up a gear box so you can turn a reasonable sized prop. The 'pager' motors with gear boxes (like the PU-04 from Falcon, available in the US from Bob Selman Designs) are quite powerful, draw 1/3 amp and are less than $20.

Depending on how much room you have to fly your creation, you have a number of plane choices. The Guillows 16" Prairie Bird or One-Nighter, or most other similar sized rubber band FF models, even beefed up Penny planes are quite suitable for light weight R/C.

Read through some of the threads in the URL above, and all your questions will be answered...