I remember reading conversations on this forum about people comparing Starsector to RTS videogames and/or player using the autopilot approach and having fun this way. So short answer: maybe it could work for you too ... but I guess it really depends on what are your experiences and expectations as a "RTS player" vs. what Starsector has to offer.
What is an RTS ? The so-called "real time strategy" videogames are, more or less, built on the idea that the player builds a base and an army and then uses it's army against opponents. The player controls individual units and/or unit groups on the battlefield - their position, their movements, their targets, and so on. The strategy layer exists more or less depending on the game, but it's mostly about creating opportunities, assessing tactical situation, responding to situation changes and a good measure of micro-management - again depending on the game. Also resources management is key.
What is Starsector ? At its core it is a spaceship fleet battle simulator. The player pilots/controls one spaceship and can also use a limited amount of fleet command points to give general tactical fleet orders and/or direct order to one or a few of the other ships in its fleet. Player also manages reinforcements and retreat. The important thing here is : player has a limited amount of fleet command points, so in large fleet battle player definitely won't be able to give different orders to all it's individual ships every 5 seconds.
Starsector is designed is such a way that, during combat, player will be able to create/exploit opportunities, assess and react to tactical situation changes. But it's certainly not about micro-managing all of it's ships on the battlefield. So no, in my opinion, Starsector is not meant to be played as an "RTS" game.
As a conclusion to this longer answer, a few suggestions:
- learn piloting, it's really fun (do you use the mouse and the left-shift keyboard key to turn your ship around ?)
- trust the AI to control/pilot the rest of your fleet's ships
- pause often and check tactical situation
- use command points sparingly
- if you haven't already, maybe try to pilot a carrier - you will then be able to stay away from the frontline and somewhat give orders to yours fighter wings - which could be somewhat closer to an "RTS" experience
- later, if you like carriers and have several of them in your fleet, you shall learn to use the precious command points to order strikes on specific targets