munroburton wrote:https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hors_de_combat
Aside from Byng's flagship(which blew up with all hands), that force was pure Frontier Fleet and whilst a figure of 36,000 spacers might look impressive to any individual - the entire SLN has something like 20 to 30 million spacers. Two and a half of which they lost later at Second Manticore(along with half a million at Spindle).
SLN HQ has bigger problems to worry about. Also, those frontier fleet personnel wouldn't be heading back to Sol - they'd go to the nearest major fleet base, or as other posters have said, Meyers. No way the Mandarins would let any of them set foot on Earth or stay in the Sol system.
In any case, I can't imagine many of them are eager to return to Solarian space with Byng's disgrace hanging over them. Imagine being reassigned and their new shipmates finding out they were at New Tuscany. Brr.
I think the navy would be more concerned that they would spread the word on what happened there. After all, the SLN murdered the sailors on three ships without warning. Then they all learned that the navy was totally wrong on the distance for which Mantie missiles were viable. Also, that the Manties only went after the flag ship and did not kill the rest.
Take those thousands of sailors and spread them through the fleet and you would have a public relations disaster.
Byng worked to limit Askew when it was only an analysis. The last thing the navy would want is to have survivors talking to shipmates all through the fleet.