Hmm. Actually, to answer the author's question (and my own) about power sources, what if you constructed the tailcone out of a composite skin with aluminum longerons? That way, you could use the structure itself to transmit power yet the skin would still insulate ground crews et. al. from getting zapped. And if the burst disc took out the longerons, you'd lose the tail anyway, so who cares if your gizmos lose power?