Got this cruser about a week ago and altho not perfect , I must say that the "saucer separation" offers a lot of play mechanics that make it a worth while ship -- even as it has a few bugs .
The plus side :
- You get a flying "pet" that is capable of supporting you in space in the following capacity :
Assult , distraction for enemies in PVE , and I swear I think it healed me once ... , but that could be my imagination ...

.
Basically it's the only (non-holographic) "answer" to the fighting "pets" that the Klingon carriers have .
- The lack of a saucer also gives the ship you do control (star drive section) a manuverability that is quite surprising .
I can't tell for sure if it is more manuverable than an escort , but it's sure nimble and a ton of fun to pilot , and I'm sure its the most manuaverable of all the cruser ships in this mode .
Plenty of Engineer slots can turn the ship into a Tanker , atho its not as good as a Tanker than the Exelsior refit .
- On a personal level , it's the most "Trek" feeling i got from a ship since the cloacking ability .
It's just fun !

The minus side :
- "Saucer seperation" takes 4 minutes to "recharge" once you've re-joined the saucer with the main hull .
Really ? Why 4 minutes ? It's just too long .
Should be 2.5 or 3 minutes tops . As it is , you usually can use it once in PVP .
- Saucer often becomes damaged and while it can be healed , sometimes it does not get back to following you and just gets "stuck" (unmoving) .
- If the fighting goes elswhere or the enemies are far away , you must rejoin your saucer because it will not follow you into battle over great distances .
(and once you rejoin , it's 4 minutes till available again)
- Last but not least , your turning rate with the saucer on is abysmal , and I often use Evasive Maneuvers to give me a boost in turning about .
Aaaand I almost forgot that without the saucer , your hull is a bit weaker ... , not my much but a bit .
All in all , while the AI of the saucer could definitely use a slight improovement , and the "recharge" timer is really too long , I've found this ship to be the most fun-and-usefull for me .
I am a Sci VA , and the cloacked Defiant escort was just something that I could not get to work well 4 me in the current state of pvp ... .
(I played well as an escort capitain in Tier 4 ...)
So ... I say give this ship a try ... -- if you like crusers and are looking for something different .
Thanks Cryptic !