Legal issues over depicting World War Two equipment

[Rama]

Originally Posted by Former_Older

Imagine you're making a racing game about Ferraris

Now, imagine what Scuderia Ferrari will say if you try to do that without securing permission, and if saying "Well this car was made 50 years ago!" will sway them

Actually, in Italy (and in all Europe), you could, if you don't use the name "Ferrari" (which is protected by a trademark).
Industrial design, including car and plane design, is not protected by the intellectual property rights and can't be copyrighted (In Europe, that's the main difference with US)
In industrial design, only patented design can be protected, and only for a duration of 25 years.
Trademark are of course protected, but the trademark deposit must be confirmed each 10 years.

I know it's fully different in US.