Hi Doug,
Your last comment sounds spot-on... with the extra equipment onboard you are having to fly with higher throttle, and I don't think the kokam cells are designed to take that kind of current. I bet if you tried an 8-pack of nimh hecells (1100mah) you would not have the cutout problems.
Regarding pointing the patch, wait until you see my "man packable" uav setup... it is a bit of a joke really, aimed at the proliferation of companies trying to get in on the homeland security cash cow, but I think it will actually turn out to be a pretty good way to point the antenna. And no, it doesn't involve mounting ANYTHING on top of your head
Thanks for the feedback on the Electron 6, I've looked at those a couple of times but never bought one because I'm at critical mass with my receivers... I have just enough for every plane I fly, and I crash a plane before I buy a new one
Bill