Mercenary "delay the Rebels" ever worth it?

[TJJ]

How many extra jumps does it buy you?
I'd hope 2 extra jumps, or perhaps even 3? Though I've a feeling it's only 1.

Given that the delay & scout options both cost you ~1 jump's worth of scrap, I find myself almost always* attacking the mercenary.

*Obviously with a few special case exceptions; when hunting for a random homeworld event, or when attacking them is cost-prohibitive/dangerous.

[Peo01]

I used it once to get back to a specific shop in order to buy my beloved halberd beam cannon.
Other than that, I leave them alone, since they offer me their help to kill rebel scum.
Can't kill someone who's on your side... mercenary or not.