I started out with the Hangar 9 Solo Series trainer (stars and stripes) also. It flew just like most trainer airplanes fly. Very steady and it would float in for the landing just like most other trainers. (I personally don't like planes that float so much because I find them much more difficult to land than non floater sport planes.) The only thing that I did not like about this plane was the wire main landing gear and the small tires. Not hard to fix, but I found it hard to get through the grass because of this. One more thing, if you are going to put two slots in the fuse for the switch and a charging jack, make sure you put both of them on the side without the exhaust. On mine, there was a hole drilled on both sides, and I made the mistake of putting the charging jack on the exhaust. Hope some of this helps.