Commanding a starship was difficult. As long as ships grew beyond the size of where a single spacer could perform all of the necessary functions, it became essential to rely on other people.
Back when Ves initially received the Barracuda, he witnessed how the corvette ran smoothly under the control of a small crew of close friends and comrades.
This was different.
The HHX-6963 was a beast with so much space, sections, compartments, components and other intricate systems that a crew of 2000 was only reluctantly able to keep her running!
Due to automation and the immense size of many ship components, it didn't take nearly as much crew as people thought to run a capital ship.
Naturally, relying too much on automation had its own dangers. After his jaunt aboard the Starlight Megalodon, Ves developed a healthy paranoia towards ships that relied too much on automation.