This is one thing about the rank level missions that has always confused me - which rank do they use!
Lets say I look at a haulage mission, it will tell me that it is ranked Broker and that hostile ships could be sent against me. Well Mr FD I hate to be the bearer of bad news but my Trade rank has nothing to do with my ability to defend myself against attackers. I would much prefer that the rank level for mission be solely based on the player's combat ranking as the only danger, whether it be perceived, imagined or real, is the chance of combat during the mission, not on whether I got really good at hauling cargo from one system to another.
The suggested pilot ranks by the PIOLT'S FEDERATION, which are listed in the discription of various mission are related to the particular type of missions.
Example:, Scaning beacons, murder, bounty hunting, is realted to combat status, passenger's are related to explorine, cargo is related to trade.
The issues player's have is that the Pilots Federation and both Navy's use the same term "RANK". One (Pilot's Federation) actually pertains to experience of the various types of mission. The other (Navy(s)) is based on the number of any and all accomplished missions relating to the particular Navy(s) issued by any and all broker's affiliated with the particular Navy(s).
Tis important to remember that the Pilot Federation rank doesn't depend on whom one works for, while the Navy(s) and the Alliance does.
Example: If one is in the process of working on their Federal Ranking, then one should only accept missions from the Federal aligned broker's, indicated by the watermark next to the broker's discription. Though one can accept any mission from any broker, doing so will cause some disdain with the other causing a blue or red triangle to show up just left of the particular Navy's reputation indicator. Either pointing upwards or downwards. If for instance, one has a red triangle poin downwards, one will have to do appoximately an additonal 12 missions for the particular Navy's allilitated broker before any of the actual work is is credited to influence they have with the particular Navy(s) progress indicator. The confusing part is, once the influence is at 100%, one can't see the progess that is being added. Until one rep is at 100, where as a Naval mission will be offered, in which case if accepted an completed succesfull, thus causing the influence indicator to show how much was there above and beyond what one needed. Hence the issue one seems to have to do more missions sometimes vs other players or themselves.
Besides the one indicator the Pilot's Federation has indicating ones progress towards Elite, one can only tell one's progress by the number of rebuys they no longer have to make when involved in pew pew. Trading and Exploring doesn't have any other indicator but the one visable.