Ok, Im about as new as they get to R/C flying. But I have learned some very valuable lessons that I'd like to pass on about the Aerobird.
First off, for anyone wanting to get into R/C flying, the Aerobird is simple enough to teach you the basic elements of flight without costing you an arm and a leg. Here are some pros that I like about the Aerobird. Keep in mind this is my very first R/C plane.

1) Cost to me was reasonable for the radio and all the trimmings
2) Parts are very easy to come buy. If you have the internet, Hobbyzone has every single part you will need. Their webpage is easy to order from and their prices are just about what they are in the actual hobby stores they retail from.
3) The durability of this plane to me was amazing. I knew I would crash the plane, thats why I bought a beginner airplane. But this plane took a pounding! :boxing: I have hit 2 fences head on from a shallow dive at about 100 ft. and the Aerobird was easily repaired.
4) Ease of flying impressed me. The very first time I took the bird up I flew with all 3 of my batteries and didn't wreck once. I learned that the wind is your daddy when your up in the air and even did a touch and go on my final flight that day.

Ok here are some tips that will help any new owners of this orange beast :devious:
1) GO THROUGH EVERY SINGLE FLIGHT CHECK THE OWNERS MANUAL TELLS YOU TO. I can't stress this enough. The tail will move with a pretty good crash. Not making sure all the goods are lined up will just slowly damage your plane with each ill-fated take off.
2) Know that the wind is your masta...young grasshoppa. Almost every single crash I had was related to the wind in some way. The book wasn't lying when it said that if the ribbon hanging from your antenna was almost touching the antenna, you will have a harder flight. Don't forget that the wind down where you are is probably less than what is 100 feet up. I caught a mad tail wind the other day and couldn't speed up enough with the throttle to put enough thrust over the tail feathers to turn and smashed into a grove of little trees.
3) Learn to manage your battery time in the air. You don't have to keep the plane full throttle to have fun. An easy tail wind and just a smidgen of throttle will keep you moving pretty good and keep you flying longer. It also sucks if the plane is like 300 feet from you and the battery dies. Make sure when you think your battery is about up to keep the birdy close.

Stuff to keep your plane alive longer. :idea:
1) IF THE TAIL BOOM POPS OUT OF THE FUSELAGE...FIX IT IMMEDIATELY! My tail boom popped out once on a good crash (from my wifeys flying) and was eventually the demise of my fuselage. It got to the point that in a steady wind, when I pulled up to start a loop, the tail would pop out easily. The plane would go into a shallow dive and I would have no control at all except to stop the throttle. This alone cost me 2 wings and a fuselage. I lost the fuselage cause on one of these wrecks the plane was dented and I didn't know the dent was that bad. During an attempt at a loop my wing folded at about 200 feet. My Aerobird crashed INTO the ground. The computer was smashed to bits and I had to order a new fuselage. The tail boom can be fixed to not pop out with just a couple of holes through the fuselage and a zip tie.
2) LOL...make sure the wing isnt dented...SEE ABOVE STORY.
3) Go ahead and buy extra rubber bands. The ones on the wings slowly stretch out and will cause the wing to be cut into by the prop in even a hard landing.
4) Put clear packing tape on the leading edges of the wings and tail and on the rear edge of the wing where the prop could hit during a crash. This is sorta like armor. If the wing is cut into by the prop the tape will keep the tear to a minimum.
4) If you dont have a really smoothe runway to take off and land from...keep the landing gear in your tacklebox. They look sweet, but landing on even mowed grass will make a perfect landing an crash. Landings on grass without landing gear is sweet as butta and the fuselage is tough enough that it wont even scratch it.

I hoped this helped. Like I said, Im new at this so don't think Im trying to toot my own horn. I just wish somebody would have told me all this stuff from the beginning.