I have little experience playing with mods, but I can give you some input regarding vanilla carriers.
1) This entirely depends on what role you want your fighters to play. If they're here to hunt down enemy frigates or protect other ships from fighters and missiles, interceptors like Talons, Thunders, or Sparks afte preferred. Heavy fighters like the Broadsword or Gladius are good for supporting attacks against enemy ships, as their point defense flares will help all your fighters live a bit longer. Anything with ion weaponry is also very helpful in this role. Bombers and heavy assault fighters like the Warthog have the heavy weapons to deal serious damage to heavy targets but can struggle top punch through shields without kinetic weaponry support. Many fighter wings, particularly the expensive and powerful ones, can be used for different purposes than its intended role and still do fine - a Xyphos wing provides great anti-ship support and can still swat attacking fighters out of the sky.
The only wings I've found consistently disappointing are the Piranha and Mining Pod. Both are too cumbersome to get places quickly.
2) Most carriers can mount any fighter they want, but a couple have preferences because of their ship systems. The Astral can teleport fighters back home to replenish, which significantly increases the uptime of bomber wings. The Heron's targeting feed provides a sustained damage bonus that intercepts or heavy fighters really appreciate.
3) Since Talons cost just 2 OP and give you effectively four flying zero-flux Vulcan cannons, I'd always fill those slots with something.
4) The three fighter skills for officers are all a big deal and help quite a bit, though carriers are still good without them. I don't know if carrier skills make a bigger relative power difference than regular combat skills would for a warship.
5) You can keep as many officers with carrier skills as you'd like, as mass carriers is a viable strategy. It all comes down to how you'd like to build your fleet.
6) Some of the most fun I've had in starsector came when I was piloting an Astral or Legion. The former let's you delete anything of cruiser size or smaller with a bombing run, teleport all your ships back home for reloading, and do it again in 10 seconds. The latter allows you to slug it out on the front lines while directing your fighter swarm to support any nearby ships you choose.
7) I'd avoid aggressive or reckless officers unless you've got a battle carrier (like the aforementioned Legion).
Big carriers tend to come with heavy weapon mounts and ship systems that let them project a lot of concentrated power. 4 Drovers can field more fighters total but won't necessarily concentrate them without fleet orders. Both approaches work and I haven't tested things out enough to know the "better" option.
I hope this helps!
