ORIGINAL: Leo L
Hi Andy,
Welcome to R/C flying!
The SuperCub is considered to be the best beginner plane. Although there are a lot of beginner planes available for you to choose from, the SuperCub stands out as the best of the group. Some people complain that the radio system that it comes with, 27mhz, is prone to interference from people running "toy" R/C equipment on the same frequency. I have had seven HobbyZone/ParkZone planes, all of which operated on the 27mhz band, and never had any problems. I guess a lot depends on where and when you plan to fly. I do all of my flying early in the morning, when the park is empty and there is no one around to cause interference problems. If you are concerned about the interference issue, you can assemble a Supercub from the spare parts bin, without Tx and Rx, for around $90. You can then add your own radio equipment.
As a beginner, you should only be flying when there is virtually no wind. As you get better, you will be able to handle winds of up to 10mph. Of all of the beginner planes on the market, the SuperCub and the Multiplex EasyStar are the two best at handling wind.
Don't forget it looks really cool![8D] I think that is why many of us buy one to start out since they look more like a real plane vs the other trainers with the "orange body and wings and rear mounted probs". In addition to the bomb drop feature, you can even add floats to it so it can take off and land in watter. It will fly easy enough and land easy enough, but buy spare props since it may take a nose dive during takeoff until you get the hang of it. Hold it on full power before throwing it into the wind nose up. I have one and like it but I would upgrade the radio as the Antenne for 27mhz is long and snaps easily. A 72mhz radio can be had cheap and will have a shorter Antenne. Better yet upgrade to a 2.4ghz radio. Also a new plane just came out for $129 so it is cheaper then the supercub but smaller. It looks even better though then the supercub CENTURION RTF ELECTRIC G/S, it comes with a 2.4ghz radio, a lipo battery (supercub comes with a NICD but it works fine), and looks cool. Not sure about durability though but I wan't one.