A very well made, accurate P-51 Mustang model that looks great zooming in circles. When I found this, I planned to buy two for my grandson's bedrooms, but then found out ceiling fans in their rooms did not allow for space for them. So I bought myself one and put it on my home office ceiling. I did have some trouble finding the knack for properly launching it, but part of that was because I was doing it in the wrong direction at first. It will only work in one direction, I think because of the engine torque, kind of like how the engine torque has a turning effect on a real prop plane. If looking down from the ceiling, the rotation must be clockwise. Then it is a matter of launching it at the right speed and direction such that it maintains the right direction without spinning. Many reviews have noted this issue. I almost deducted one star for this, but decided it is otherwise a very high quality model--no cheap plastic crap--that I left it at 5 starts, especially after I figured out how to correct this one flaw, as I will describe. After changing the battery one time, I could not get it to work right again. Maybe the next battery weighed differently and affected the plane's balance...I don't know. But as an engineer who has always been an airplane buff, I realized the rudder just wasn't large enough to keep the plane pointed in the direction of flight, making it difficult to get started correctly. I suspect that is the reason for the kite tail that comes attached to it--to add some extra drag to hold the tail back. But I made a simple modification that allows me to launch it right first time every time. I tested my theory of the rudder not being large enough by sticking a 2"x2" post-it note on the rudder, and it instantly worked great. But it looked really tacky, so I replaced the post-it note with a piece of clear packaging tape folded over itself with about a quarter inch of adhesive exposed to attach it to the rudder, then trimmed it to the same height as the rudder, which about doubled the size of the rudder. See the picture. When it is flying, you can't even notice the clear tape, and it launches correctly every time, even if I give it a bad toss. It actually flies better now--before, it would seem to fly somewhat sideways, like it was skidding around the circle, which looked unnatural. With my rudder modification, it flies "straight". I've since bought a 4-pack of rechargeable batteries and keep it running for hours a day. Each 2000 mAh battery lasts about 3 hours. I'm growing older, not up. I highly recommend this plane for kids or airplane buffs like me, and if you have an issue getting it to fly right, try enlarging the rudder with some tape as I did to make it perfect. I will buy a second to take to work once this virus passes.
