Then lets make a shipping cum escort company. They will come in systems after St.K, and have the characteristics outlined above with some special missions mixed in as well. One mission I could think of now is to lead a small squadron of fighters to retrieve stolen goods from a floatila of pirates who tries to gate out of the system. The pirates after St.K should have some sort of stealth armors. The high profile goods they asked you to transport should have -ve prices to prevent the player from stealing. You fee will also depend on the type cargo you transported or protected, whether food, ammo, weapons or fuel etc.
And for each transportation mission you can opt to borrow one or a set of special autons to assist you. If the autons are destroyed in the course of the missions, you will need to pay accordingly. But if damaged, you are not charged for repairs.
