Please advise on D80 for my situation

[AB630]

I did a few searches ( i know forum members appreciate this being done first) but couldn't find a thread that would answer my specific questions.

I have had a Macbook Pro for about a year, and found myself messing with as many settings on my wife's Cybershot as i could as Mac's handle pictures in a way that makes you want to do more. I have Aperture , which i still suck at using, but have really started to enjoy photography. Obviously i have iPhoto as well..

Here is the thing. I fly as part of an aircrew on military aircraft out of Hawaii. I was looking at possibly getting a Nikon D80, but i have no idea what lense i should have for shooting from an airplane. I would also be using this camera to take pictures on hikes around the island, and birthday duty with the kids.
Are lenses that specific that i could not find one that could accomplish all of this well? Also, is the D80 a bit too much camera for someone who just likes to tinker with settings, lighting etc ? Is this the kind of camera you grow into, or is this something im going to need a lot of experience from the get go to make the money worth it?
Any and all help is greatly appreciated..

BTW i got to use a Canon (rebel i think? ) while flying at night over by the volcano about 2 days ago. The pictures of lava flow at night, and some of the long range shots this camera could make, have inspired an increase in my camera budget.

[fx101]

If you're shooting from an airplane, you either want a body that will let you shoot at really high shutter speeds and buy really big glass that'll let you do that, or you do what a lot of people do and get a lens with VR and shoot at around 1/2000s with a smaller aperture. The 18-200VR is a great lens although I'm not sure how good 200mm is going to be from a plane.

[Frog]

The D80 is the camera I have. It has the option of using auto which is great for a beginner but then you can start using aperture priority and/or shutter priority. There's also the sport, closeup, portrait, landscape and I forget what else because I never use them. The point being it gives you the choice of using these programmed modes and when you're ready for manual it has that too.
As for lens for shooting from an aircraft, I really don't know. It depends on how magnified a view you'd want.