Hey Stag,
How can you say you are getting a contract for a game you are building in your spare time and then link RHS? According to their documentation you are a core member of the dev group but so is Ardy and all he did was create the OpsCore and ACH helmets.
http://doc.rhsmods.org/index.php/Credits
I don't see how a huge MP lobby would benefit the game that much, while there are those that prefer Real Time H2H without needing to forward ports and search IPs, the majority of players I have been around prefer PBEM. It is almost like how old men played chess with the newspaper back in the day. Play at your own pace, and I think this has a huge appeal to many of the people that enjoy this series.
As for the AI, a system comparable to Steel Beasts Pro PE would fit the CM style very well. Conditions and Event based actions and reactions with triggers to spice things up. They have a very easy to use UI to make this an easy process and you can build them into every waypoint and route. I know that Steel Beasts has some military contracts so they might of had a larger budget for AI development, but it is a remarkable system that would seem to fit in with the CM engine. Everyone talks about ArmA's graphics but it is a pain in the *** to get the level of editing power achieved through an easy to use UI in Steel Beasts.