Thank you all for your comments, suggestions! I too get the feeling, that there should be a way to make the controls easier. For instance, a similar game, https://store.steampowered.com/app/846030/DV_Rings_of_Saturn/ provides autopilot from the get go, albeit, that game is a mining sim with less action, and even steeper learning curve. Possibly, there will be an autopilot / flight assistant component before I implement any ship customization, which can be turned off if you are looking for more challenging gameplay, or e.g. want to glide onwards without breaking.