Technic from the era long before lift arms and smooth stud-less panel pieces is not for everybody. I like it, perhaps because I grew up with that being the norm and also having this particular set at the time, but I think mainly because it delivers what it promises right in the name - it's technical. I have always enjoyed looking at see-through technical illustrations and exploded view blueprints and such. The skeletal body of this model let you see all the functions in action, which to me is great. It may not be a perfect replica of the functionality of a real plane, but it's good enough to show the working principles of a few main aspects.

A single control-stick moves both from side-to-side and forwards and backwards, controlling both roll and pitch. The very large specialised propeller piece is connected to a single square 2x2 piston engine which runs surprisingly smoothly - if assembled with just the right amount of slack between moving pieces.

The build of this plane is a very different experience to modern sets. You have to pay attention, begin each step by sorting out the required pieces, and look carefully at the pictures to not forget or misalign anything. It may be frustrating to some because it is somewhat like trying to replicate a model from pictures rather than an absolute step-by-step process. Not literary, but to some extent. I enjoy that because it makes this more of a rewarding exercise, a bit like going to the gym. It's hard work at the time but still feels good. It uses mainly conventional techniques, but have a few surprises along the way. The size of the finished model becomes suddenly apparent when you start the wing sub-assembly towards the end, with ten 1x16 technic bricks in one go you get the full wingspan right away. That's a bit of a wow-moment.

This is a rather sizeable model. It takes a lot of volume, so you need a good amount of space to display or store it. I usually hang it from the ceiling with some fishing line because not many shelves are deep enough to fit it. That works great, though. This model is very light for its size, which also makes handling it easy and outright pleasant. Makes it feel like a flying machine in that sense. It's also relatively robust thanks to a lot of triangulation in the construction, although there are parts that can come loose or break off if you don't take care. Some original old-style pieces commonly used throughout this set are prone to develop cracks with age, that can cause them to lose their grip and result in a lot of flimsiness. You are probably aware of that if looking into actually buying sets from this era, but it is worth mentioning since some key aspects of this model depends on them.

The B-model is forgettable in comparison. It has the same skeletal look but lacks functionality and moving parts, so there is nothing really to see through it. The set also includes a technic figure with a helmet, not really necessary but a nice bonus I think.

If you don't appreciate this skeletal look, this model is not for you. Its main purpose is not pristine looks. It's more about showing off how stuff works when you interact with it. It does that brilliantly.

For its day, this set was really cutting edge. With an actual working control stick, a simulated engine, and it just being a great looking set in general, this one was bound to be at the top of my wish list as an 11 year old boy.

Pros

• Actual working stick: controls ailerons and elevators
• Deceptively big
• Engine with realistic piston action
• Great form

Cons

• No rudder control
• Landing gear tends to buckle under weight (two horizontal axles hold it together)
• Solid plate elevators, solid brick tail, don't quite match the naked airframe aesthetic

In the neutral category: it comes with a large figure (some don't seem to like him, but I didn't mind him), and the plane is only an airframe--there's not surface covering. I have to admit, this kind of bugged me as a kid--so much so, that my pieces still have scotch tape gunk on'em from when I cut out card board and tried to tape it to the frame to give it some kind of covering... Of course now I can appreciate seeing the underlying structure.

As other reviewers have noted, though the rest of the plane is in "skeleton" form, the elevators and rudder are solid. This never did feel quite right. I could live with the rudder, but even today, I wish the elevators were skeleton, too.

I don't have much comment on the alternate model. It's nice that it has an alternate model, and I believe I built it once, but the original model is just so much cooler.

This set has, unfortunately, not aged too well when compared to modern Technic. What used to be cutting edge is now pretty simplistic in terms of Technic sets. Still, it's a great, older set and especially for the nostalgia. In fact, in writing this review, I'm definitely inspired to build this one again...

In 1988 I was 16.. and had roughly 2 things on my mind.. Girls, and airplanes. I was heavily into Technic, using it for school projects as well as amassing quite a colllection, but for some reason that now escapes me I was unable to get this set.

Fast-forward to 2011 and I'm lucky enough to pick this up, MISB for a little over 100€ !!

2 glasses of wine.. 3hours.. a lot of swooshing and there it is. My wife thinks it pretty cool. She also thinks it's rather big.. and i'm grinning like the proverbial cheshire cat.

The build is easy.. funny to see enormous leaps from step to step in the instructions vs todays piece per step.. and just 15 pages!.. Nothing really tricky, though it's easy to make a mistake if you're not paying attention.

No special parts.. except of course the propeller mechanism, unique to this set.. Amusing to see how in 1988 we needed 3 parts to join two axles vs todays 1.

So what's to like..

It's an airplane.. and a pretty good looking one. Similar to the well known Cessna 17x, utilising floats and forgoing any pretence of skin in order to show the working mechanisms, this is a fantastic functioning model. Ok, there are no working flaps and rudder, so only pitch and roll. No yaw.. and landing might be a bit hairy sometimes.. and i'm not so sure that the single cylinder engine will be enough, but it really doesn't matter. What there is works and works well.. and can be used to show how the real thing is controlled.

It's also big!.. much bigger than pictures, and the amazingly small box, imply.

What's not to like..

Well some rather important flight functions, as already mentioned, and yes, the 'maxifig' is a bit gangly, with an impressive colection of doublejoints.. and it's awfully yellow!.. Guys in Denmark.. please.. can we have some more colours ;) Instructiosn cram a lot in compared to todays models, but an experianced builder will not have any issues.

Summary. If flight and Lego is your thing.. grab this set if the chance arises. If you're looking purely for features and functions, this might not be the set for you.

For me this is a wonderful set. Looks good, does something interesting and engineer'y.. if only it wasn't yellow!

I was given this set as a birthday gift when I was 8, I still have it and rebuilt it. Firstly it is a big set and has a great design and look to it. The gear stick that controls the flaps on the wings and tail is sensitive and sometimes comes loose.

A great addition the set has instructions to build some sort of a space shuttle which added more playabilty to the set. I found the pilot figure abit useless as you cannot use him in many other lego sets apart from Technic sets from the same era. Overall a not bad set espically for its age.

A good set, the plane felt huge when I first built it at age seven or eight. I liked everything except the "Lego-man", that came with the box, which is a lego part I have never liked or played with. ("playing" with lego models was (and is) expanding/rebuilding and experimenting with the model, not imagining that it is a real airplane, or something like that - no need for plastic guys). Overall the airplane is great with nice details like ability to control the ailerons. However, I did not like the rear fin, since it is built using "standard" Lego's, which I did not find appropriate in a technic set. It is a very easy model and is a good set for the beginner. The secondary model, the spaceshuttle, is equally good although not as big.