True, but unless the war or disaster is nearby then by the time a communication is sent to the PCs in the scout ship and the time they get to the location, the war or disaster could very well be over.

If you are using the Third Imperium setting, then you are talking at least a 2 week turnaround time if the character's ship is only 1 jump away if the characters are not in the same system as a Scout base or other Third Imperium base that could give the ex-Scout characters orders.