ok dads always been into planes, mainly anything that has to do with flying, but a couple weeks ago he took me and my youngest sister to an airshow, and even being a car guy, i thought it was pretty cool, but a couple guys brought out theyre rc planes, and his eyes lit up.
so i was thinking on getting him one for his birthday, nothing fancy, just a small beginner plane, but i know nothing about planes and what would be best for a novice.
but he has always loved the A10 warthogs and the Fokker ever since we moved close to wiesbaden germany(where the baron is buried).
but i don't look to be getting anything till jan., so something that's ready to fly, for around $100, and can support a camera mount.
any help would be nice, thanks

1st of all, your dad will need a trainer to learn how to fly.

Your local hobby shop should be able to help you here. I strongly suggest contacting a local club.
The local club will provide instruction so you dad's learning experience will be a painless as possible. In addition, they have a place to fly the planes, which can be a problem (due to local restrictions) at times.

You didn't indicate whether your dad was interested in glow or electric planes. The primary differences are:

Glow planes are larger than electric (the majority of the time)

Glow planes require glow fuel, a glow ignitor and a charger for the battery for the receiver & servos (normally included when/with your transmitter/radio).

Glow planes are noiser and do require a much larger flying area than electrics.

Glow planes can easily handle 10mph - 15mph wind because they are heavier (typically about 5 lbs for a trainer), and fly faster than electrics.

Glow planes have a typical flying time (before you run out of fuel ) of about 15 - 20 minutes.

Glow planes require cleaning the exhaust residue off the plane at the end of the day (about 5 minutes using Windex and paper towels )

Electric planes are (usually) about 1/2 the size of a glow trainer.

Electric planes will also need a battery charger, however, this charger is for larger batteries and is normally a separate item.

Electric planes are very quiet and can be flown in an area the size of a baseball field (foot ball fiel size, or larger is recommended while learning).

Electrics are usually quite light in weight (typically under 3 lbs) and fly much slower than a glow plane, because of this MOST electric trainers have difficulty with wind much over 5 mph.

STOCK electric planes have a typical flying time of 5 - 8 minutes. By changing the stock motor to a brushless motor and the battery to a lipo battery flying times can easily exceed 30 minutes on a charge. Be advised that upgrading the motor, ESC (Electronic Speed Control) and lipo battery (and correct charger for it ) is not a cheap proposition.

Electrics are clean and do not require cleaning at the end of the day.

If you can give us some idea of which you prefer (glow or electric ) we can suggest some very good flying trainers and (as applicable) associated equipment.

Be advised that the amount you want to spend is not practical. There are SOME electric planes out there that can be had for $100, however, reguardless of what the manufacturer's advertising says, they are not really for a beginner and, IMHO, you will be wasting your money and disappointing your dad. A decent glow trainer (ready to go with associated equipment ) is going to run about $300 - $400. A decent electric plane (one that will actually fly and can be flown by a beginner ) is going to run about $200 - $300.

Hope this has been of some help.

I will echo Campy's comments and add this:

If you find the club in your area (Just about every town has one - Best way to find it is to find the local hobby shop and ask) The club members will often have some good used equipment, and you can get flying for much less money.

IF you want, here's something you can do: Get your dad a nice A.R.F. (A.lmost R.eady to F.ly) trainer for around $100. Then, do all of the "Leg Work" of finding a hobby shop and a club for him. That will be enough to whet his appetite and he can lay out the cash for his own engine and radio.

Minn has some excellent advice. I've trained a lot of students using the standard Tower Trainer (I also learned using this plane) and it's a good flying plane. It's also an excellent value. You can get the the ARF plane by itself for $69, you can find it here http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXCAS2&P=0 . You can also get the plane as a RTF (Ready To Fly) for $259 which comes with everything you need (plane, radio, an engine). It actually takes longer to charge the batteries in the radio than it does to get the plane ready to fly. You can find it here http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXCXF4**&P= .

If you're interested in what else is available out there I've compiled a list of available trainers and 2nd planes, you can find that list here: [link=http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_4537845/tm.htm]Looking for a trainer, what's available. (Updated 8-14-06)[/link]

Whatever plane you choose for him please get him in touch with a local club and an instructor. Also, we'd love to meet him. Encourage him to get on RCU here. It's a great place to get questions answered and make some new friends!!

Hope this helps

Ken

A bunch of great advice,
I would add one more comment:
You say you are a car guy so I assume you don't fly.
What would be a better gift than a plane for your dad?
How about a plane for both of you so you and your dad can share the learning experience together.
If your budget is too tight to do this at least you can share the one plane and still do the father son thing.
I don't know how your dad would feel but being a dad myself I value every second I have with my children more than anything else.