OK, what is the better explanation to give fledgling students. Should
you say the wing deflects/pushes/thrusts the air down to hold the
aircraft up ... or should you say the wing/airflow creates a low
pressure area that sucks the wing/aircraft upwards.

Like many people, Bernoulli was the initial and only explanation I was
aware of ... but I now think it is easier and more accurate to explain
that a wing/airfolil pushes the air downward. Yes, you do have
pressure differences, but that is just an artifact of the process.

A Bernoulli based explanation seems to create some inconsistencies.
For example, boat and airplane propellers are basically identical
devices and differ in engineering specifics primarily because they
operate in different fluid mediums. Both employ "fluidfoils" ... and
both produce "thrust" ... but wouldn't a Bernoulli view argue that the
airplane prop is actually sucking ... and how would you use Bernoulli
to explain the thrust produced by the boat prop.

What about a Bernoulli view of SR-71 flight ops as it climbs from
sea-level to 85,000 feet.

thanks,