Matt… your spot on with your questions here… Answering those at the onset of every survey will really help bring the lidar, bird and surveyor together, so you can adjust your system to get the best possible data, consistently. Every mission is slightly different, no?
For corridors, I use Map Pilot. Very easy to program and simple to follow.
Loose DJI Pilot. It is the weakest link and your greatest liability.
Depending on your raw skill, you could always hand fly the corridor. We do many missions this way.