Hello,
I have started using SE recently, and I must say that this is a game about exploration. In the opening post and its subsequent comment chain, I have found that the goal of this concept is to create a survival-RTS/resource management game, performed in 3rd person and outside of installations.
I would like to add to this discussion with the following: in my opinion, using any perspective other than 1st person will completely remove the exploration aspect of the upcoming game and destroy all immersion. This game will no longer be awe-inspiring and all sense of scale will be lost, as the experience will turn into a simple survival/strategy game with procedural planets.
The most important reason that this game is as awe-inspiring as it is in its current state is the presence of 3d ground clutter, along with the ability to place the camera close to the terrain and move at 2.00m/s. Remove that ability, and every object in the game would instantly lose its scale. Actual, believable mountain vistas would turn into dynamic wallpapers/backdrops for the actions happening in the foreground.
You stated that the reason for your decision was that a player model would be too difficult for a developer. Allow me to propose an alternative: the player model does not have to be present. Instead, multiple effects could be added on screen (i.e. sliding helmet visor), each of which will be far easier to program than many routine aspects of this game.
The ships could be modelled in the subnautica style: relatively simple interiors with modular items that have a radius at which they could be interacted with.