A retired US Air Force pilot has accused Airbus of using his name, identity and likeness without authorisation to promote one of its helicopters.
In a complaint filed at the US District Court for the Central District of California on September 18, Chuck Yeager said the infringement occurred in 2017, when Airbus launched the so-called Racer helicopter.
Yeager, who has broken a number of world records, said the aerospace company had exploited his standing as “one of the most, if not the most, famous pilots of all time”.
The filing alleged that promotional material released in 2017 quotes the CEO of Airbus Helicopters as saying: “’Seventy years ago, Chuck Yeager broke the sound barrier. Now, we’re trying to break the cost barrier’”.
According to the complaint, in 2008 Yeager visited Airbus with the aim to negotiate an endorsement deal.
Source: Wipr
