Don't forget the cloverleaf is also a circular polarized antenna (separate and distinct from omnidirectional).... It's largest benefit is that it has reduced signal loss when the transmitting antenna changes polarization. The transmitting antenna on the aircraft is usually polarized in one direction but when you make sharp turn or go into a loop or some such maneuver, the TX antenna orientation changes to the other direction or something in between (this all depends on how you mounted the antenna of course, but in the end it's going to vary, no matter which way it's installed)... If you use linear polarized antennas at both ends of the transmission path, you can have a 6db drop in signal strength.... by going with a circular polarized receiving antenna, you can reduce the drop to 3db. This is why such an antenna can reduce dropout. (Forgive me on the db details... it's been so long, I may have my numbers bungled, but the drop changes dramatically with polarization changes)
I could get even more carried away as circular polarization can rotate 2 ways... left hand and right hand... much to the dismay of Amateur radio operators doing satellite communications... as sometimes the signal from a low earth orbit, spin stabilized satellite can change polarization. Hams found 2 ways to deal with the problem, either switch polarization of the receiving antenna using relays and 2 sets of wiring harnesses OR as one ham I know successfully demonstrated... go big! An array of 4 linearly polarized, high gain beam antennas could overcome the signal loss by boosting the signal so much that the db drop didn't matter.... It worked great but it's not very practical for portable use!
Anyone interested in learning more about the "Cloverleaf" should probably search for quadrifilar helix antennas as, if my rusty memory still works, is the more common name for this type of antenna.
Regards
Kaptain "Dang... I forgot what I was going to say again" Zero