Well i couldn’t tell from own experience so won’t argue that.
Fives are not necesary for decent performance anyways, exept for those fitting skills ofcourse - Hyperion is my favourite ship but i have not felt the need to get it to 5 jet, it performs just fine as is for pocket defence.
Starting out is nasty, once a good variety of options are unlocked it’s no longer an issue. Taking the bite out of the start would help getting more players to stay - im 100% shure of that.