BalloonRadar 2.0 · Last updated: 13 September 2026 · Effective date: August 2026
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:
Bartosz Oberski — BalloonRadar 2.0
Contact: balloonradar@gmail.com
| 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) |
| Device battery optimization exemption (Android) | Keeping GPS tracking and screen active during flight without system interruption — safety-critical function | 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.
| 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) |
We do not sell your personal data. We use the following third-party processors:
All processors are bound by data processing agreements and are required to protect your data in accordance with GDPR.
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.
On Android devices, the app will ask you to exempt BalloonRadar 2.0 from battery optimization on first launch. This allows the app to maintain continuous GPS tracking and keep the screen active during a flight without being suspended by the operating system. This exemption is safety-critical — interruption of GPS tracking during an active balloon flight could prevent your position from being visible to ground crew. You can withdraw this exemption at any time in your device's Settings → Apps → BalloonRadar 2.0 → Battery → Unrestricted.
When you are active as a pilot:
You control when flight tracking is active — data is only transmitted while you explicitly have the cockpit screen running with tracking enabled.
You have the right to:
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.
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.
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.
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.
BalloonRadar 2.0
Data Controller: Bartosz Oberski
Email: balloonradar@gmail.com
Website: balloonradar.com
Airspace data provided by OpenAIP — licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0.