Why does fleet keep automatically attacking

[RhinoDad]

Window opens up asking if I “want fleet to investigate xxx” I click decline. Sometimes I am even asked twice and declined twice before fleet sent off automatically to attack that which I in theory declined to attack.

Running on Aurora

Under admin settings attack set to advise (Not advise then act)
Fleet Template set to custom attack fleet
Fleet is stance set to attack
Reaction range set to 33%

[RhinoDad]

Also noted that Fleet set for "defense". Its react range is set for "System". Home base is colony in system. The colony has abondance of fuel supplies. There is also a fuel mining base in system, also with abondance of fuel. They are not damaged nor any ships in fleet showing red or pink highlight. They are not updating. Ships are all at least 90% full of fuel.

The fleets drift off to other systems sometimes over 150m distance. Outside of just burning fuel and leaving system they are supposed to defend. Why? If left on manual they do not act this way and stay put.

[Nightskies]

It's asking if it can set an attack point (or an attack target). However, the target is also a threat, and fleets automatically respond to threats so long as Military Attacks are on automatic.

Unfortunately, event-generated stations are set to zero strength on the threat list. This prompts understrength ships and fleets to respond to the threat periodically. To prevent this, you can either disable Military Attacks until you've dealt with the threat or make sure the threat is outside of any fleet's Fleet Engagement Range. You'll want to disallow individual ships from being on automatic as well.

Alternatively, babysit your fleets until you've dealt with the station.

This is certainly not ideal and is an annoyance, at least for me. Purely guessing, I think this is a bug with events and generating stations.

Regarding fleets moving, its probably moving to a new Home Base as set by automation.

[RhinoDad]

Thank you for reply. Takes care of one problem of them attacking when you decline their request to attack.

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However, fleets set to defend, reaction range of system still sometimes drift about leaving system they are set to defend to visit another system sometimes clear across territory. Then if attack/threat does show in system it was told to defend then fleet has to travel quite a distance in order to return to system it was set to defend. If not careful they will burn up all or most of their fuel leaving them next to useless in a fight. Does not help that enemy fleet can do some damage whilst fleet is on trip back to where it was supposed to be.

As mentioned all settings such as fuel upgrade, etc. are set to manual. Am just trying to try out fleet templates and a few of the auto settings such as "attack", "defend", and fleet reaction ranges for these auto fleets. [Found that auto fuel does not work as ships will be sent to places shown on map a fueling centers that are not closest. Preference seems to be star base.][Not to mention that it can come at an inopportune time.]

I use star bases in a hub and spoke manner. The are often bases closer but fleet(s) flying all the way from bottom of territory to top of territory, or just drifting to another system nearby.

Manual fleets not are not behaving as such. They are staying put not flying about burning fuel unless something enters reaction range/system.

[Nightskies]

This is erratic behavior that I had not seen much of- most typically when chasing something within their engagement range that left before they jumped to it. It happens commonly when trying to catch a Hive ship by passively parking fleets able to handle it. This will also happen with manual fleets. I have seen such behavior without the above but haven't been able to identify why they happen most of the time, partially because they were uncommon. I'm afraid this is as much as I know about this.

Regarding refueling at distant locations, are your fleets heading to a particular colony? Say, Kasim, or something like that- a world that was under the watch of some ancient Ikkuro defense stations? Lately, fleets have been behaving oddly when choosing where to refuel. I've noticed a couple of reports that fleets favor Kasim despite being a bad choice.