Bruce,
I have to agree with you about the fan generating drag when it is not running, despite the intake position. It was my hope while not eliminating the drag entirely by using an intake at 90 degrees to the airflow that it would reduce it significantly as opposed to having it directly in the airflow, and hopefully even power off it may contribute to lower air pressure on top of the wing generating some lift as a tradeoff.
As far as the airfoil I have to agree with you as far as any real benefits from it, other than being very easy and quick to build, are minimal. I have to agree that a symmetrical traditional type of airfoil would be the better choice. Perhaps he could model both to test in X-plane and see if there are any differences in the performance of one as opposed to the other.