Referring to 1 friend and I vs. the AI...so not sp.
Yes when the timer is at 0, it flashes for a bit then they launch.
however, whether this is new to this current patch or not I'm not sure, but a tthe very last milisecond, the AI will post a bid and then it immediately launches.
I've even tried bidding, waiting 3 seconds and bidding again, ad infinitum, hoping to get the last bid....but the AI cheats....10 to 1.
I'm no noob, I know how to play this game and havent had this trouble with pirates before, tho admitedly I have mostly played mp, but have spent occasional time on sp.