Oh, Susquehanna!

zigzagzang: It depends on how the ships are being used. For example, in Star Wars, they have a base and it behaves like an air brigade. However, in examples like Star Trek and Mass Effect, they use naval terms. This is because for the most part, they don't have one-man ships. The closest modern parallel to what a spaceship will realistically be is a submarine, so I say naval terms. It depends on the story, however.

This is a pretty good point.

Like in BSG they treat Galactica like a boat (if I remember right), but the vipers like planes.

I think Nico wins.