I'm a pretty rabid video game player myself, but it took a fair number of lessons for me. I had to learn how to fuel my plane, how to keep my plane from ballooning when turning into the wind, how to tune my engine, how to tighten my prop correctly, how to keep my trim stripes from peeling away from my fuselage... well, you get the idea. Our flight training program didn't just teach me the basics of R/C flight. I probably could have gotten that down within a few lessons. The training taught me how to operate my airplane in a consistent and safe manner all the time, and I wasn't certified to solo until the club instructors felt comfortable with me flying alone next to them while they were with other students.

Flying is probably the easiest part of this hobby to learn. You not only have to be a pilot, but also a mechanic and builder/repairer as well. Learning how to operate and maintain your plane properly is at least as important as learning how to fly figure eights or making crisp 90 degree turns on your landing approaches.

Your flight instructor will teach you about the whole hobby, and not just how to take off and land. It's lessons like, "never adjust your engine from the front of your plane - only from the back" and "don't lean over the propeller arch while trying to start your plane" that are so valuable. Learning these lessons the hard way could result in you wearing an eyepatch and having to take your socks off to count to nine. That's no fun for anyone.

I'm glad you're excited by the prospect of flying the P-51 PTS, and I've only offered my advice to save you the expense of lessons I've already learned the hard way. Electric flight is fun, particularly if you can find a good indoor location for flying in bad weather, but I didn't have a good experience while trying to learn basic flight on my park flyer. Glow planes are heavier, less buffetted by wind, and respond with more control authority when you steer them. They are just plain easier to fly than lightweight electric aircraft.

Our clubs have cookouts, grill brats on training night, and have fun flies and special events all year long. I've been amazed at how many nice and funny people I've met since I started fumbling my way around this hobby a couple of years ago. As much as I enjoy the thrill and fun of flying my planes, the humor and comraderie and chops-busting that goes on at our clubs is one of the reasons I'm as excited about this hobby today as I was when it was still brand new to me.

I hope you get to experience all of the pain and joy and laughter and fun and frustration and excitement and amazement that I've experienced over the last couple of years. I'm sure you'll learn to fly quickly and the P-51 PTS will let you learn to solo and then learn aerobatics and continue to improve your flying skills for quite a while. You are embarking on one of the truly great sports that most anyone can enjoy once they make the decision to take a chance and learn what seems impossible when you're first starting out.