Only the spider shoots back uranium missiles at the ship when it is close, which can take out the pilot.
On a separate note, when boarding a damaged corvette, it is possible to destroy it by accidentally shooting at the walls. Boarding enemies cannot attack a player ship.
Suggestion: 1. Allow more ground units to target the ship, based on its proximity.
2. Allow boarding enemies to damage the ship - when shields are down, not just the player.
3. Increase the number of likelihood of being boarded, based on the grounded enemies remaining at the end of a mission.