My understanding is that EVERYTHING will be available to acquire in-game. All ships, items, weapons, etc.
Yes, right now the purchase of a ship is really a reward for contributing funding to the development of the game.
Yes, like the real world, if you destroy an un-insured ship, it's gone forever.
But too much is made of ship insurance and LTI. CIG devs have stated again and again that ship insurance will be very cheap and that LTI is only a minor convenience. But LTI has taken on a life of it's own within the SC community.
Right now, insurance isn't live. And there's no persistence. So if you blow up your ship....just re-spawn.