Sorry. Not trying to be a p***k, merely trying to use a little humor to point out that going electric is not going cheap.

Reading the reviews, I'm not sure I'd recommend this for a trainer. While electric motors are reliable (little worry about dead-sticking), from an instructors point of view, having the power of a glow-engine when getting out of trouble is a plus. You'll notice that the list price of $109.00 for the plane does not include the radio gear, so tack on another $125.00. Add a second battery, a quick field charger, and you're in the $300 range. And its Balsa, just like the glow versions. Flight times on the battery look like 6-10 minutes, depending on your use of throttle. Then you have a delay time to recharge batteries or replace batteries.

If you want a Balsa Trainer, I'd recommend the Hanger 9 Alpha Trainer RTF. At $289, it comes with everything you need, except fuel, glow starter, and chicken stick. The Evolution engine runs reliably, and will tick over with the flywheel installed at 1500 rpm, making landing easier. When carefully assembled, it flys with almost no trim adjustment. With the glow powered plane, you'll get more flying time (10-12 minutes per tank, few minutes to refuel). I had a student last night with the Alpha trainer, and he found it very easy and calm, even with some pretty significant thermals around the field. But of course, glow powered planes are noisier and you have to clean the gunk off the plane when your done. The alpha trainer is also larger than the Superstar, making it easier to see.

If you want to go cheaper but have a very durable plane, and have a few basic skills, try building a Spad Debonair (www.spadtothebone.com). Its a simple build, but the plane flies incredibly well, and its built like a sherman tank. With a 60" wing span, its larger than the Superstar, so again its easier to see. Cost of plastic and accessories can have you in the air, but again its going to run close to $300 (Plastic is cheap, but things like landing gear, and other startup stuff build up). I learned on the Debonair, and it survived many hard landings, a couple meetings with trees, and a couple cartwheels. On the plus side, when I purchased my plastic, I had enough left over for 3 more planes.

Hopefully you find this helpful.

Brad