I have been working on the problem from a different angle, trying to figure out the least conspicuous arrangement of gear to carry on my person. While looking like a mobile hotspot might be fun at Defcon it will not keep you from looking out of place. So far I am leaning in the direction of running most of it out of a bag, and then using an e-reader/tablet to control all the functions remotely, so that all the cables and such remain out of sight.
Overall though I think the flight option is pretty awesome, and opens up more locations for sniffing, as you do not need to be as close in person.