I agree, gunboats and bigger make lousy escorts. An escort needs to be agile enough to force the pirates to deal with it, not just fly around it.
I disagree about scouting, though. If there are two escorts, sure, send one as a scout. But I don't ever want to be a lane away from the freighters, to much can happen behind you and then you don't get paid. Maybe have the freighters enter the lane twenty seconds behind? Time enough for you to send the scatter signal and for them to exit the lane before they hit the pirates.
"Two things I know; Gravity sucks and Ion Storms blow. And that proves the universe is trying to kill us all" - Barren Waste, Captain of the Wasteland Wanderer
An approximation of my reaction when I see my next victim...er, these forums.