Space link
A space-link is a corridor established between two ships using force fields, for the purposes of transferring materials or personnel between ships. This is used in cases where the ships lack compatible docking ports and the jolly compliment would be impractical. The technology is heavily distrusted by the Gudersnipe Foundation, who fit it to their ships out of necessity but typically consider it to be a last resort.
Safety Concerns
The technology effectively consists of one ship broadcasting a series of overlapping force fields that create a passage from the airlock of one vessel to the airlock of another. The space inside is then pressurized, allowing personnel to walk through it as a shirtsleeve environment. This means that a failure of the system while in use would be instantly fatal.
Opinions on the matter differ heavily. The Alliance fits the technology to all of their ships, and have safety-certified it to within acceptable tolerances. It is routinely used for underway restocking of cargo as well as ship-to-ship transfers outside combat zones. In combat, it can be used to transfer personnel from one ship to another in an emergency, and is highly valuable for evacuations.
Despite using an identical version, the Foundation does not regard the space link as remotely safe(In point of fact, space link components are regarded as interchangeable, with Foundation ships using Alliance-built parts and vice-versa). The Foundation instead relies on robotic transfer of pressurized shipping containers for under-way restocking, and feels that jolly craft are the only "safe" way to travel between ships. On occasion, they will sent personnel through a space link wearing pressure suits. Space links are also used under emergency situations to evacuate ships and space stations. This is, by the Foundation's admission, the "only reasonable use" for the technology, and that it should be considered only when "the loss of life is to be expected".
Safety Comparisons
It's very difficult to discern which organization has the 'correct' approach to this problem. Because they use them only as a last resort, usually under battle conditions, the Foundation has a much higher incidence of fatalities for using space links. The rate of incidence vs. successful crossings is very low over-all, with the Alliance seeing similar numbers to the Foundation in combat situations.
The Foundation has a much lower incidence rate of accidents over all, citing stricter training and higher safety-standards. While Alliance standards are still high, they have fewer resources to dedicate and fewer career soldiers. The key difference is that the Foundation nearly always meets or exceeds its standards, while the Alliance seldom meets them. Still, the Alliance regards space link technology as viable and acceptable.
