RE: Antenna wire
This just happens to be one of the many benefits of 2.4. For me this has always been a big deal it seams. From my pylon racing experience, it is not good to have the wire hanging out of the back of the plane as it could be stood upon by your caller.
So, the trick we used was to wrap it around a straw. This will shorten the length considerably. Just make sure it is not touching or going back over itself. You can, with tight wraps, get the thing down to 10" or less.
Or just get a module and RX and move into 2.4. You will avoid the common 1/2 A interference issues here as well.