It's really pretty simple. You do the following:
Buy a cheap fiberoptic lamp at wal-mart. Cut all the fibers free in the longest lengths possible.
buy a tiny micro drill bit the size that matches the fibers (slightly larger than fibers)
drill holes wherever you want lights.
put fibers in the holes sticking out about 1/4" extra and fix from inside with superglue
Every 4-5 inches, make a bundle of the fibers you glued in place and tape them together in a tight bunch. Trim them so the end of the bundle is flat.....close to the tape.
Get some small pvc tubing from hobby town and cut it into 1/2" cylinders. Glue the ends of the bundles into the cylinders so that they are about 1/2 of the way into the cylinder. On the other end of the cylinder you will glue in your LED.
I use the christmas tree lamps where you get about 25 LED's per strand.............all this runs off of batteries. You can buy the A/C type of light strands if that is your wish.
Once you get everything lit and wired, then you prime/paint the ship. You paint the fibers on the outside as well. Then when it's all dry, you clip the fibers close to the hull with tiny toenail clippers also found at walmart.
I would advise cutting one of the wires from each battery box from the lights, about 3 inches from the box..................and wire in a single switch (slide switch etc) between the cut ends of that wire from each box. Then turn all the boxes on............and the one switch will control the entire ship.
Dave