Customer Reviews

Learning Resources Airport

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I bought this Learning Resources airport play set for my 3 year-old son for Christmas, using a promotional certificate from Amazon. I originally wanted to get my son the 2003 version of the Plan Toys wooden airport, but couldn't find a reasonably priced set on eBay. So, I got this play set instead, because there just aren't many toy airports available that are suitable for his age. I have to say, I'm glad I didn't actually pay the full retail price for the toy, because it's a bit of a disappointment. The quality and design of the play set seem a bit substandard for the price; and, I have reservations about its durability.

The plastic feels brittle, and the hinges and other moving parts don't seem very sturdy. For example, the hatch on the plane is attached to the fuselage by a tiny, very flimsy hinge. The latch was especially sticky on the door of our plane, so I had to file the tab because I worried my son might yank the entire door off the plane, in his efforts to open it. Now the hatch doesn't really lock, but maybe the lifespan of the hinge will be prolonged.

The 4 figures (1 dark-skinned female, 1 medium complected male, 1 blond male with a hilarious 70s coif and mustache, and 1 more Caucasian male) are hollow, and are a bit of a pain to insert in the vehicles. You have to make sure their arms are raised, especially in the plane or the door won't close.

The landing gears on the plane don't lock, and the rear ones fold inward, so if you reverse the plane on the floor, the back wheels usually collapse.

The jetway is a bit narrow, too, even for my 3 year-old son to push a figure through to the plane. You sort of have to shoot the people through the gate, like cannonballs, so they can fly the friendly skies.

The top of the ramp already has a white stress mark, where it must have bent when my son (who isn't very hard on his toys) removed it.

The one piece of cargo doesn't really fit in the plane, not if you want the door closed. And it doesn't stay well on the baggage truck unless it's upside down.

Also, there is a heliport atop the airport, but no helicopter. Fortunately, we have a little Viking Toys chopper that fits pretty well.

Despite its shortcomings, my son does enjoy playing with the airport play set. He regularly plays with the plane, car, and trucks. He was really fascinated by the terminal and jet during a recent trip--his first time flying--for which I'd tried to prepare him by reading Byron Barton's *Airport*. This play set does bear somewhat of a resemblance to Barton's illustrations, and is one of the few airport toys for preschoolers that has realistic features (e.g., the telescoping jetway, tower with radar, fuel truck, baggage truck, etc.). I just wish its quality matched its potential play value...or perhaps that my son were not so obsessive about small details!

My kids are 2 and 4 and are pretty awesome with their toys; it is very rare that something that gets broken. Within minutes of opening this on Christmas morning, one car had a busted axel, we found a defect in the door of the plane that made the hatch keep falling off, and there was a tension mark in the ramp (when you see a lightened line in the plastic where it was "bending"). As I was putting it together, I definitely noticed it was a lighter-weight plastic, but I figured they knew better than me.

Well, I contacted the manufacturer (Learning Resources) directly about the issues that I'd had and they weren't interested in documenting these issues nor do they have replacement parts. A girlfriend got the same set for her son this Christmas and had similar complaints; she noticed the poor quality and had a few breaks in different pieces early. It's such a shame because this is such a cute set and the kids WANT to play with it. Amazon is just going to send me another set that will break. Well, a company that doesn't stand behind it's products and who is seemingly producing toys shortly destined for the landfill is not a company for me.

This airport looks cute and my kids have enjoyed playing with it, but the quality leaves a lot to be desired. It should be noted, too, that my kids (ages 2 and 4) are NOT rough with their toys at all. Two of the four little signs that you insert into the main airport have broken off (this happened within days of getting it). The ramp has completely cracked at the top after someone accidentally tripped over it once. The wheels on the airplane stay neither folded in nor fully out. The door of the airplane opens and closes just fine, but also snaps off constantly which is annoying. The people don't fit well in the cars or the airplane. Also, the layout of the airport is a bit silly -- a car can drive up the little ramp and then has no place to go -- it can't turn around or anything. They could have configured it easily enough to have it make sense! All that being said, my kids have played with it some, but for the price, it's a pretty "cheap" product. My mom bought it on another website and paid $40 for it. She wasn't too impressed for what she got for that amount of money. I think I'd pay $15 for it, but not more than that!

My kids, 6, 4 & 2 enjoy playing with this. It's smaller than I thought, and really geared toward the younger 2 children. But, all 3 enjoy playing with it. What's nice about it's size is, it can be placed on a shelf & there aren't a lot of part to lose or break off.

I have to admit I was disappointed to see the FisherPrice stopped manufacturing the airport set. I saw this, ordered it and am very satisfied. It isn't FisherPrice quality but very close. My 2 1/2 yr old plays with it with her older friends (up to age 8).
Since we live on a small island in the caribbean, the airport is a big deal here and gets alot of play. In general, I believe all children love to play with the airport playsets, and more manufacturers should make it. In any case, this is a good toy for both boys & girls.

I think this toy is just okay. I'd say not worth the full price. I was expecting the plastic to be the similar to Fisher Prices Little People but it is more brittle (as another customer noted) and just seems substandard. My son has enjoyed this about half as much as I hoped.

My 2 year old grandson loves this toy. He plays with it by himself but much prefers me to play with him. It is well worth the money.