I think the choice will likely have something to do with just how much one can direct NPCs. If in the same ship carry space as a Cyclone one can have 3-4 X1 Force, and send them out to scan, one supposes you can cover much more territory. The cargo unit the Cyclone can carry makes a difference, but I'd much rather have several smaller terrestrial targets each with sniper rifles out there, and the onboard guns of the X1, than put all my resources ins a box that is so easy for any real ship to kill. That Cyclone is a bullet magnet, and anyone inside one is looking at death by Aurora, or any other real spaceship on or near the surface.