By Alan Baldwin

LONDON, ENGLAND (Reuters) - Italian wind tunnel operator Aerolab said on Friday they were taking legal action against the Force India Formula One team for "serious and persistent" breaches of contract.

The company issued a statement after media reports suggested Force India were concerned that Lotus, who are now working closely with Aerolab's parent company Fondtech, had copied details of their 2009 car.

Lotus F1 technical head Mike Gascoyne was previously employed by Silverstone-based Force India.

Aerolab managing director Jean-Claude Migeot said in a statement that the Lotus rumours were "designed only to tarnish the company's reputation and professionalism and to divert attention away from the facts.

"The truth is that Aerolab is suing Force India for not fulfilling its obligations."

Force India were not immediately available for comment.

Aerolab said their three-year collaboration with Silverstone-based Force India had come to "an abrupt and unhappy end" in September this year after "serious and persistent breaches of contract by Force India."

Gascoyne, whose Malaysian-backed team were awarded what would have been the 13th slot on the 2010 starting grid only in September, played down suggestions that his team's car was based on the Force India.

"Obviously our wind-tunnel model was designed for us by Fondtech in Italy," he told the autosport.com website.

"It is based around a 2010 chassis, because there is a big fuel volume in it, it has a Cosworth engine, an Xtrac gearbox, our suspension, and other stuff designed by us. The Fondmetal guys put some generic bodywork on.

"Whereas you cannot copy anything or take anyone else's IP (intellectual property), you can use your expertise - and you will base that on what you know and what directions you know have been happening. That is what has happened."