Hm. Interesting.
In recent months, CONCORD has received reports of other ships disappearing without trace in Molden Heath. Earlier investigations into these reports also failed to provide any answers. Our investigation into this pattern of events will continue as a matter of urgency.
A pattern of disappearances in Molden Heath makes it more likely to be hostile action, then.
Not nessessarly. It can also be a new type of anomaly.
For exemple a new kind of wormhole leading to a dangerous place could result in the same problem.
It also can be a new kind of deadspace pocket causing collapsing of the warp bubble.
I’m sure i can think of other kind of dangerous things happening in space.
Colonisation didn’t stop because we stopped sending ships ^^’
And it’s not the first time that ships have simply vanished …
Even if in the other case it was with a gate
Considering that every ship capsuleers destroy and then salvage could be considered to have disapeared without a trace, this isn’t necessarily something immediately exotic. There could be a new player flying through New Eden that we have yet to meet (and live to tell the tale).
It would not matter. All “officials” ships are equipped with some kind of data transmitters. Otherwise factions wouldn’t know how much decrease in standing should be applied. And kills by capsuleer’s are logged and since the authorities would know what to look for, they would already have found it.
Of course, it’s just my theory, there is indeed multiple sources for a ship that are less exotics ^^
my point was to show Miss Makoto that it an hostile activity is not mandatory to explain those disappearances.
Well, assuming this source is reliable, they’ve apparently recently captured a distress signal from the topical ship.
A pattern of disappearances of which we have one example.
I rather think we need more information on this pattern, and what other ships CONCORD claimed have been ‘disappearing without trace’ before attempting to incorporate this relatively late claim of a pattern into our own pattern of response.
Or non-dangerous things. Maybe these ships are docking up in capitals, which then jump somewhere else. We don’t have a list of capsuleer pilots, and baseliner crews don’t get out and climb into your pod when you dock a ship in a carrier’s SMB.
And I’m sure they’ll release the raw, unprocessed data stream for independent analysis right away.
once again, my point was to show that the missing ship did not necessary imply hostile, sentient action. not to do an exhaustive list. 
EDIT:: I agree we need more info if we are to help
Right, I’m just saying that we shouldn’t rule out friendly action, too. I mean, what if the RF just doesn’t want CONCORD to know about the results of whatever they were doing, so they fake the ship’s disappearance, and then call in CONCORD for help to sell it better?
I started talking about astronomical events because It’s my speciality field. Politic games bore me really quickly.
I’m still not sure that the use of filament is safe for the cluster.
The following transcript was released.
'This is [redacted] of the Minmatar Navy vessel [redacted]. We have encountered a [redacted] in Minmatar space and are attempting counter measures. Our engines are disabled and we are under heavy bombardment. Despite being under heavy fire we appear to be taking minimum damage. Wait! No! We’re being boarded. [redacted] infantry have breached our defences and are now attempting to…
Why release it at all if you’re going to redact all the truly important bits?
… I guess at least now we know what happened to them, just, not because of whom.
Or why.
I agree with you, redacting who is attacking is… at least weird.
Interesting to note that this isn’t the first one to disappear in this region in the same circumstances apparently. We were aware of Aidonis report, and were thinking about the divings into Abysses but it seems it could be different, or not just that. It could be some “identified boarding parties” (but not released to us) that are responsible also of those missing ships (at least in Minmatar space, what about other states ?).
Again, CONCORD say too much or not enough.
To add, interesting is that they were not trying to destroy them as the distress call mentions heavy fire but no breach, but the goal seemed to board the ship. In this case this means there are few things to think about : they want to recover something, someone or get some intel.
The only logical explanation I find of this mouse-cat game is that CONCORD is warning people but don’t want to create a wave of panic.
Because, if, for example, it became known that blood raiders, sanshas, or other spread pirate factions are now boarding navy vessels, it would start a panic among civilians and stop right there interstellar travel.
Imagine if the SOE (as pure example of pirate faction) start boarding ships the massive panic it would cause.
It would spread chaos and misery in the whole cluster even if it’s any other pirate faction.
CONCORD have apparently said that:
“We advise that anyone travelling in Minmatar space does so with caution and reports anything suspicious.”
Anything suspicious ?
I had a good enough understanding that it couldve been pirates or some unknown threat attacking and capturing the ships/crew. it honestly was the most logical for me outside of wormholes, or deadspace pockets. now well just have to wait and see whether we will be notified who this threat is or if we’ll find out first hand. but as i said, my guess is one of the pirate groups are up to something major and are in the final strides to the coming of events to happen.
And I do have fair reason to believe
The release of this last pair of missives sounds like CONCORD is looking for help, without the inconvenience of having to ask for help, and without having to share the more sensitive details.
Still, they’ve said quite a lot for not saying anything.
Despite being under heavy fire we appear to be taking minimum damage.
Why is that? Have the attackers not equipped themselves to deal damage to Minmatar Navy vessels? ‘Heavy bombardment’ shouldn’t have that much trouble getting past shield tank.
But then:
Wait! No! We’re being boarded.
Which suggests that there is something aboard the ship that the attackers want, and they are going out of their way to preserve it.
[redacted] infantry have breached our defences
Few of us would refer to pirates as having ‘infantry.’ This sounds like an organized operation with very different stakes than pirates typically have.
Also, we still don’t know what it was about this specific Navy vessel that made CONCORD announce its disappearance, especially if there were other ships going missing in MH. At this point, though, I’d posit that it isn’t the ship or its contents that were important. It was the manner in which the ship went missing, and the fact that it is part of an escalating pattern. This became the opportune moment to warn capsuleers.
Whatever ‘[redacted] infantry’ boarded the ship, CONCORD has suspected it for a long time.
So … thinking for just a few seconds about what we know …
The [redacted] bits don’t tell us much but they kind of imply a little significance. One thing I’m not totally clear on is how common boarding actions are between conventional ships-- they’re pretty rare verging on non-existent for us, but there are some obvious differences. Some people like Sansha’s Nation and the Blood Raiders (was on the receiving end, once-- that was really scary) seem to do it at least semi-often, so let’s assume “not unheard of.”
If that’s so …
Given all the stuff that goes on across New Eden every day, would they have [redacted] any of those? It seems like they’d have broadcast it loud and clear (“Pirates are bad! Don’t do piracy, kids!”), unless there was something especially scary about it.
Soooo …
Drifters? Not unusual in anybody’s space; a little weird to mention sovereign territory as though it meant something in that case, so probably not.
So maybe one of the empire or “friendly” minor factions? Mordu’s Legion? Caldari? (But I guess that might not be rare, either.) Federal? SOE?
ORE? (Militant industrialism!)
Triglavians??? (“You owe us a cruiser!”)
well, Even If I would always be suspicious of the SOE, I’m more inclined toward the rogues drones actually.
they are common to all empires
they would surprise someone to be boarding because it’s not something we expect them to do so
AND with the help of the SOE, their everlasting allies, they could have infantry.
Because we actually have no proof that all [redacted] speak all of the same entity (we know they refer to at least 2 since there is a redacted after “minmatar navy vessel”
(“Everlasting allies?”)
Uh, anyway-- I don’t think rogue drones boarding is actually very surprising or redaction-worthy, though. Most of the Overminds, both in K-space and the Abyss, appear to have originally been constructed for, and crewed by, humans. They’re Dominix hulls.
They seem to be pretty good at boarding, just, maybe not with “infantry” as such?
rougue drones would be more obvious about what theyre doing one way or another. whats happening to the ships is more… detailed. whoever is doing it has their reasons for taking the ships and crew.