During the course of the Homeworld war, it's estimated that up to 84% of pilot casualties were caused by prolonged exposure to the vacuum of space following ejection from their craft. To this day, a number of Homeworld wars pilots are listed as "Missing in Action" as their bodies were never found following space combat.

When embarking into space Somtaaw realized that this issue needed to be addressed directly. Somtaaw had no great pool of replacement pilots, and every life became irreplaceable to the Explorer's missions. A vehicle was needed to recover these lost pilots as quickly as possible.

While the Taiidan military mostly performed recovery operations with the carriers themselves (leaving pilots up to the task of returning to the craft via maneuvering packs, on their own), Somtaaw decided to quickly adapt their new light corvette chassis to the task of search and rescue.

Designers stripped out the forward guns but expanded on the massive sensor used for heavy scouting (now used to detect bio-signs from space suits). In place of the forward guns, engineers developed a new system for pilot recovery. Two chutes, side-by-side, allowed corvette pilots to 'catch' drifting pilots with low-speed passes, in the event that quick recovery is desired.

The nose also comes equipped with two grappling lines. These lines are fired into space close to drifting pilots, trailing hand-holding loops behind them. Once the pilot has grabbed the life line, it is reeled in slowly, allowing the pilot to guide himself into the forward recovery chutes.

The corvette's interior is divided roughly into three parts. The nose is an airless compartment where medivac teams can treat pilots within their suits. Behind this is a separate compartment, pressurized, where medics can treat critical cases. A one-man airlock between the two compartment allows for medics and patients to transition between both compartments. The final compartment is the crew cubicle, which has been reduced so that two men can pilot the vehicle.

By mandatory regulation (buried within nearly 400 years of Galactic Council Regulations of Space Medical practices), the vehicle is painted Red and emblazoned with the Universal Medical symbol (The White Triangle). This and the forward recovery chute are painted white to aid in pilot recognition under stress. Lights near the recovery chute also cue pilots to direct themselves to the vents for recovery.

By the same Galactic Council Regulations of Space Medical Practices, the Recovery Corvette is exempt from Combat by all parties, as it is acting as a recovery vessel. However, in the few times it has been used, Pirates and other privateers have not adhered to the code. Two recovery ships have already been lost- one from Faal-Corum and the other from Kuun-Lan.

Maximum patient occupancy is 12, but 20 can be accommodated in emergency situations. While it isn't the most ideal medical evacuation craft, at least it gives a pilot a greater chance of survival than under the first Homeworld war methods.