If you have played EVE Online I wouldn't have to explain that to you. I'm not really sure of any other way to explain this, but if dogfights are you're thing your'e going to have a tougher time going up against someone who has bought equipment for their vessel via real currency. Even if you're going up against a vanilla Avenger in terms of "stats", said Avenger is going to have better maneuverability then most. That is what i mean by "stats". Not all baseline vessels are the same, some have more storage, others have better turning and acceleration, etc. Like with storage space, if you are a trader or merchant you are going to want that extra storage space so you can move more goods.
Like I said each vessel is different and has different uses, but you can't ignore that for those who have spent real money on vessels or upgrades have an unfair head start compared to most who might have spend only twenty or fifty dollars on upgrades or what have you after their initial purchase.
Might as well be posting
this then, because it doesn't help the OP. At least with mine and KKRT00's exchange he can decide which one of us has the better argument.