DEERC FX8823 F16 Thunderbirds RC Plane,3CH Remote Control Airplane Fighter Toys,2.4GHz 6-axis Gyro Stabilizer RTF Glider Aircraft Plane with 2 Batteries,Easy to Fly for Beginners Kids Adults

This is a first-time remote control plane for our family so we are definitely RC plane newbies. The plane needed a bit of assembly - the tail fin needs to be attached (glue is provided), and also the landing gear. It was simple to assemble. Once the tail fin is added the plane no longer fits in the box for storage (which would have been nice). The package comes with some extra propellers and a second battery - a very handy feature. The batteries do require a USB to AC adapter to charge (not provided) but charge quickly and have an indicator light to let you know when they are full. Being new to the RC plane world, I was surprised a plane at this price point was made of styrofoam, but I guess that is part of the design to keep it light enough for flight. Also, the nose of the plane is rubber so it survived all our crashes with no damage to the front of the plane. I do recommend flying it in little to no wind as it is really difficult to control if there is a breeze. The plane is pretty simple to control. Although it's not recommended for younger kids, our 10 year old grandson did quite well flying it. Having a wide-open area is pretty important; it did get stuck in a tree once or twice but came out unscathed except for losing one wheel but seems to fly fine without it. We didn't have a long, smooth surface to get it rolling for a ground take-off but the plane flew well when we threw it into the air (like a paper airplane). Our grandson had so much fun flying this plane. He really loved it and I'm sure he will be "hooked" on RC planes from here on out. That said, a 10 year old is going to be a little hard on this plane - it's really intended for someone older - just an fyi.

I'm a 62 former Aerospace engineer who always wanted a RC plane growing up, and now I have my first :) This RC plane is very lightweight since it's made of styrofoam yet has so far been durable enough to withstand this novices attempts at flying. Do not make the mistake of trying to fly it in the wind, as it is so lightweight and relatively unpowered it's hard to control. It assembled easily - the only thing you need to do is to glue the vertical stabilizer in place with the provided glue (much too much provided). You can attache the optional landing gear or simply launch by throwing it.It came with a second battery, so you can double your flight time before you have to break to recharge. I also liked that it came with a spare propeller and a screwdriver. I deducted a point because I felt the instructions could be clearer - especially when it told me to turn on the power switch, which I doubt exists. This means you have to unplug the battery or the underside lights (which I love) stay on.

Fun new toy for my 9 year old. We didn't have to much trouble getting it up and flying. There is a learning curve for sure, but it is fun once you get the hang of it. I wish the battery lasted a little longer, but the plane is pretty durable even during our learning moments. Speed and design as pretty good and it seems to function as expected.

This is my third DeeRC plane, and it's by far my favorite. As an adult rookie RC pilot, I still crash into things periodically, and I find the foam planes to be incredibly durable. This plane has a very soft silicone nose especially to absorb unexpected frontal impacts. I have landed this in trees, in the water, smoothly, and roughly - it just keeps coming back for more, and never shows sign of damage.This plane is slightly larger than my prior planes, and the larger body has a bigger battery compartment, which makes it easier to get the battery in and out. It's a subtle thing, but tighter battery compartments can sometimes be annoying to load up. The wing lights look very cool at dusk, and actually help you to better see the plane's orientation. I noticed on this one that DeeRC has refined their design a bit with both the wires and the lights slightly recessed in the wing. It's a very clean look.I find the hand launch to be my preference over using the landing gear, and since (excepting crashes!) I always touch down in soft grass. I chose not to install the landing gear. That has made for less things to stick when I end up in a tree, and the gear doesn't snag on the grass.The gyro is good and bad; It sometimes creates some unexpected motions or overcompensates. This isn't bad when you have plenty of clearance, but if you time a maneuver with specific expectations and the gyro kicks in and does something different it may cause a momentary stress on the pilot. The good side is that does a great job of stabilizing the plane. You definitely want to fly this only when there's no wind because the gyro isn't enough to compensate if the breeze kicks up; It's a very light plane.This plane has excellent working elevators on the tail. The gyro will stop you from doing a roll unless you press the stunt button, but I love how much more control it gives on landings. I can drop the throttle way back, raise the elevators, and the plane drops smoothly until its close enough to just cut the throttle and set down. I think it's also a great trainer for more advanced planes without a gyro, as you can accelerate your turns with it.Battery life is excellent. I get around 20 minutes per battery, which is plenty of concentration time for me. They charge fully in 45-60 minutes using the included USB charger.This is a great looking, durable, and incredibly fun to fly plane that I believe provides an experience far beyond its price. If you're interested in RC planes, and as a beginner want something to learn on without worrying about damage, don't hesitate.

I ordered this RC plane as a trial run for getting into fixed wing air RC vehicles (I have a few hobby-grade RC cars and one quad rotor already). This plane has been surprisingly durable and easier to fly than I expected.The body is a flexible but light foam (like styrofoam packaging but more flexible) and has survived a a lot of crashes (many soft grass landings but at least two good tree hits).The battery life is impressive for the size of lithium battery that is included. My son and I were learning to fly this plane for over half an hour on a single charge. The connector is standard molex so if you wanted to buy larger batteries or additional batteries (it came with two) you could.The plane flies surprisingly easy due to internal gyroscopes that attempt to keep it level. You can hold the plane with it power on and watch the elevators (horizontal tail parts) move automatically when you tilt the nose up or down. So that functionality is super nice. You can adjust this setting on the controller.The plane is reasonably fast but the speed is really dependent on if you have any wind. I tested in 5-9mph winds and could keep the plane hovering when flying into the wind at about 3/4 throttle. I would guess it is capable of about 15-20mph in still air (but this is totally a guess).There are some settings accessible by the controller that aren’t mentioned in the instructions (for example, the right trigger/bumper seems to toggle a setting on and off) but I wasn’t able to notice any difference in flight behavior so I’m still not sure what they do.Overall I would recommend this for any adult who wants to try out fixed wing RC at an accessible price.