Cruiser-class starships have a license point requirement like any other starship. However, they also have certain other requirements, to help ensure that these expensive warships end up only in the most capable hands.
To own a cruiser, you must first have 5,000 lock evasion points. Lock evasion points are gained in the course of navigating in battle and avoiding being hit.
Note: If you are being credited with weapon hits, you will not be credited with lock evasions. This is done in order to avoid doubling the rate of combat point gain of pilots of smaller ships.
An aspiring cruiser owner is also required to complete eight qualifying beacon drops as navigator. Qualifying beacon drops are at the high level or above, and involve a single ship which is of a gunship class or larger. In addition, the pilot in the control room must be alone and without assistance for the duration of the beacon drop, and the beacon drop cannot be interrupted -- meaning the ship cannot leave the sector before the beacon drop has been completed. The ship must belong to a pilot, meaning it cannot be rented or alliance-owned.
A pilot can work towards these requirements at any time, and a capable aspiring cruiser owner is likely to meet them in the process of gaining the required points.
You can check your qualifications at any time with the INFO command.
Existing cruisers require their owner to be qualified before they can launch. If the cruiser is owned by an organization, at least one cruiser-qualified pilot must be aboard.
