Hey I once with a friend designed and fluffed a "cropduster" support plan, that could with the right hardware be converted into a lowtech scout and ground attack plane. They sold well to backwater planets who could use the dual role crafts.
As long as the pirate in question have no more aerospace assets then Dropship, 1 even Sabre fighter can ruin a whole wings day
In which case the pilot(s) is probably trained as a dual-role operator, not just anyhoo local civilian pilot. I think the only time this could be useful is for a high-level recon flyby knowing the pirates don't have ASF of any kind. But how would one know that?
A whole "Mech lance or company" is what you're trying to say I think, not "wing". Well it's theoretically possible. But I wouldn't take the chance. Even a measly little Leopard has a big enough aft gun to punch out a Sabre.
They were usable for recon, annoying popup attacks, dusting the enemy (pioson, fuel (then either have 1 fire a rocket or drop flare and get a nice firewall yep mechs can cross it, but not vehicles or inf)
and no I meant a wing of these crop dusters, could loose to single Sabre, because 1 hit and these were no longer flight worthy.
Now this
Design on the other hand, well might keep if in Squadron might keep a single Sabre in check
but this is really a topic about Satellites, I figure major planets would have a "network" but when you get to backwater worlds, that network might have a weather satellite over the major settlement, but more thinking along the lines of 1960/70 earth. I don't see unless the world has " Balkanisation" that there are military satellites in orbit, no really needs. It would be nice to be able to get "data" from the jump points that say, yep we have incoming, but I expect on some backwater worlds, it is either a telescope or they work like some small airports and have you call to say that you are landing.
I know my Mercs used to use high level "Aerospace Drones" to provide use with "recon/comm" over major battlefields or contracts, just because I assumed that either the local satellite were not worth it, or because we could trust our drones better then local gear.