This question occured to me as I was reading the discussion on how symmetric airfoils create lift, and I thought about the old saw: being a good engineer does not make you a good pilot. However, I tend to think that some aspects of that would be true, that being a good engineer might make you a better pilot, as it would give you a better understanding of the forces at work. This begs the question, how much aerodynamics should pilots know? Notice I am referring to pilots of all aircraft, not just R/C.

I'll answer my own question: A good pilot should have a good understanding of stability, in particular what is static stability and how the movement of the center of gravity affects it. He (or she) should know what density altitude is, how temperature and altitude affect it and how it affects lift. Finally, I think a pilot should have a basic understanding of how lift is generated, especially with respect to angle of attack. One could probably do with out the last one, but I do think it's important that pilots know what happens in a stall and what it does to your control surfaces.

Anyways, those are my thoughts. Opinions?