BalloonRadar 2.0 is a balloon flight tracking application for pilots, observers, and ground crew. This Privacy Policy explains what personal data we collect, why we collect it, how long we keep it, and what rights you have under the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) and applicable national law.
The data controller is:
Bartek Latański — BalloonRadar 2.0
Contact: balloonradar@gmail.com
1. What data we collect and why
| Data | Purpose | Legal basis (GDPR Art. 6) |
|---|---|---|
| Email address, name | Account creation, login, sending flight notifications | Contract (6.1.b) |
| Pilot photo | Displayed on pilot profile visible to observers and ground crew | Consent (6.1.a) |
| Balloon photo | Used to generate a unique AI balloon icon; displayed on the live flight map | Consent (6.1.a) |
| GPS position, altitude, speed, heading (pilot) | Real-time flight tracking visible to observers and ground crew; flight path archive | Contract (6.1.b) |
| GPS position (driver/ground crew) | Driver location displayed to the pilot during an active flight | Contract (6.1.b) |
| FCM device token | Sending push notifications (flight start / landing) | Consent (6.1.a) |
| Notification preferences | Storing your choice of which pilots or balloons you want to be notified about | Consent (6.1.a) |
| Email delivery metadata (via Resend) | Confirming that flight notification emails were delivered; troubleshooting | Legitimate interest (6.1.f) |
We do not collect payment card data. Any future paid features will use a third-party payment processor (Stripe) subject to its own privacy policy.
2. How long we keep your data
| Data | Retention period |
|---|---|
| Account data (email, name, photos) | Until you delete your account, or 2 years after your last login if the account is inactive |
| Live flight GPS data (visible on map) | 24 hours after the flight ends — then removed from the live map |
| Flight path archive (GPS, altitude, speed, heading) | 5 years from the date of the flight, stored in encrypted cloud storage. Rationale: flight data may be required in the context of aviation safety investigations or legal proceedings under applicable EU/national law. |
| Driver GPS data | Deleted at the end of the active flight session |
| FCM device token | Until you withdraw consent or uninstall the app |
| Email delivery metadata (Resend) | Retained by Resend per their own retention policy (typically 30–90 days in dashboard) |
3. Who we share your data with
We do not sell your personal data. We use the following third-party processors:
- Google Firebase (Google LLC / Google Cloud EMEA Ltd) — database, file storage, cloud functions, authentication, push notification delivery. Servers in the European Union (europe-central2 region). Firebase Privacy
- Resend (Resend Inc.) — transactional email delivery for flight notifications. Resend Privacy Policy
- OpenAIP (Garrecht Avionik GmbH) — aeronautical airspace data (CTR, restricted zones) downloaded to your device. Data licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0. OpenAIP data is stored locally on your device and is not transmitted back to our servers. openaip.net
- Stripe — payment processing for future paid features (not yet active). When enabled, Stripe will handle payment data subject to its own privacy policy.
All processors are bound by data processing agreements and are required to protect your data in accordance with GDPR.
4. Push notifications — your consent
Push notifications are entirely optional. Before enabling them, the app will ask for your explicit consent and explain what notifications will be sent. You can withdraw consent at any time in the app's Settings → Notifications, or in your device's system notification settings. Withdrawing consent does not affect your ability to use any core features of the app.
5. Data visible to other users
When you are active as a pilot:
- Your real-time GPS position, altitude, speed, and heading are visible to users who are observing your flight.
- Your pilot name, balloon photo, and AI-generated balloon icon are visible on the live map.
- Your flight path trail is visible for 24 hours after landing.
You control when flight tracking is active — data is only transmitted while you explicitly have the cockpit screen running with tracking enabled.
6. Your rights under GDPR
You have the right to:
- Access — request a copy of the personal data we hold about you
- Rectification — correct inaccurate data
- Erasure — request deletion of your data (subject to legal retention obligations — see Section 2)
- Restriction — request that we limit how we process your data
- Portability — receive your data in a structured, machine-readable format
- Object — object to processing based on legitimate interest
- Withdraw consent — at any time, for any processing based on consent, without affecting prior processing
To exercise any of these rights, contact us at balloonradar@gmail.com. We will respond within 30 days. You also have the right to lodge a complaint with your national data protection authority (in Poland: UODO — uodo.gov.pl).
Note on flight archive data: The 5-year flight GPS archive may be subject to a legal retention obligation in the context of aviation safety regulations and civil liability law. We may not be able to delete this data on request during the retention period if a legal obligation applies. We will always inform you if this is the case.
7. Children
BalloonRadar 2.0 is not directed at children under the age of 16. We do not knowingly collect data from children. If you believe a child has provided us with personal data, please contact us and we will delete it promptly.
8. Security
All data is transmitted over encrypted connections (TLS). Flight archives are stored in Firebase Storage with access restricted to authenticated users and server-side Cloud Functions. We apply the principle of least privilege to all internal data access.
9. Changes to this policy
We may update this Privacy Policy from time to time. The "Last updated" date at the top of this page will always reflect the most recent version. For significant changes, we will notify you via the app or by email. Continued use of the app after a change constitutes acceptance of the updated policy.
10. Contact
Data Controller: Bartosz Oberski
Email: balloonradar@gmail.com
Website: balloonradar.com
Airspace data provided by OpenAIP — licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0.