I have not flown a copter, however several of the members at my club fly both. From what they have said, it is substantially harder to fly a copter than a fixed wing plane.

FWIW - I would pass on the NexStar RTF. (Do a search here on Nexstar and I think you will understand why.) For that matter, I would suggest passing on any RTF I have seen.

I would suggest getting an ARF trainer you like the looks of (The majority of trainers fly very much the same).

Add to this a USER FRIENDLY 46 engine (OS 46 FX/AX, Thunder Tiger Pro, and Evolution engines are VERY user friendly). By user friendly I mean that 99%+ of the engines will run great right out of the box. All you need to do is break the engine in per manufacturer's instructions - The engines mentioned are normally ready to fly after a couple of tanks of fuel on the ground. Please do not misunderstand me on this. There are a lot of very good engines out there, however, many of them require you to "fiddle" with them a lot for them to run properly. I would also suggest staying away from 4 stroke engines until you learn how to fly - they are nice, however initial setting up of one of them is not really for a beginner.

Cap this off with a 6 channel (or more) COMPUTER radio.

With some careful shopping you should be able to purchase all this for the same (or frequently less than) price as a NexStar.

The reasons for the suggestions are:

MOST RTF packages have a 40 size engine (Nexstar is an example of one that does have a 46). A 40 size engine is anywhere from marginal - to OK FOR A TRAINER, but rarely useable for a second plane. The difference in cost between a 40 and a 46 engine is normally less that $20.

All the RTF packages I have seen provide a BASE LEVEL 4 CHANNEL RADIO. Many people have used nothing but a 4 channel radio and been very happy. That said, many flyers want additional functions, usually by their 3rd or 4th plane (flaps, retracts). With a 6 channel radio you have the capability of this, plus the computer radio lets you store multiple models in memory, provides mixing functions, trim saving, etc. The difference in cost between a 4 channel and 6 channel computer radio is typically not that great.

Before purchasing a radio I would talk to a club member and find out what brand is used by MOST of the members. Manuals are good, but a live person with knowledge of the radio is much better if you have a question or problem.

You also want to find out which are the LEAST USED channels at your field and get the radio on one of those channels. It will minimize your waiting time for the channel to clear and also minimize your chances of accidently being "shot down".

You will also need peripheral equipment - fuel, fuel pump, starter battery, glo plug connector, "chicken stick" or electric starter, spare props, and glow plugs, some assorted wrenches and screwdrivers. These are the basics, from there - well you can use your imagination.

DO NOT, I repeat DO NOT try teaching yourself to fly. The typical/normal first flight of someone trying to teach themselves to fly is less than 30 seconds and usually results in damage to the plane/equipment. The local club will provide an instructor.

I would also suggest D/L FMS (a free flight simulator), pick up (or make) the adapter cord and practice with it. It will not teach you how to fly, but it will provide a lot of the basic stuff - stick movement and the amount of movement needed for various manuvers, stick/plane orientation etc.