FlightAware is a flight-tracking app and website, founded in 2005 and acquired by Collins Aerospace (an RTX Corp. segment) in 2021. Its privacy statement discloses broad account and behavioral data collection — profile, payment, device, browsing/preference, and user-submitted content such as "Squawk" posts — and states FlightAware sells business-and-commercial-aviation reports about aircraft-associated individuals to subscribers, while separately declaring it does not "sell" Personal Information under the CCPA. The iOS App Store privacy label independently discloses that precise/coarse location, contact info, search history and identifiers are linked to the user's identity and used for third-party advertising, and that user content, identifiers and diagnostics are used to track users across other companies' apps and websites. In August 2024 FlightAware self-disclosed, via a notice filed with the California Attorney General, a configuration error (discovered July 25, 2024) that had exposed account data — including, for some users, Social Security Numbers — and offered two years of free credit monitoring; no ongoing or unremediated incident was found.
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In a notice filed with the California Attorney General, FlightAware disclosed that on July 25, 2024 it discovered a configuration error that may have exposed account data including user ID, password, email address, and, for some users, Social Security Numbers; the company states it immediately remedied the configuration error, required affected users to reset their passwords, and offered two years of free Equifax credit monitoring.
FlightAware's privacy policy states it collects account/registration and profile information, payment and billing information (via PCI-compliant third-party processors), "Preference Information" about a user's flying choices (aircraft type, departure/arrival locations), and user-submitted content such as "Squawk" posts, comments, photos and forum posts.
RTX Corp.'s FY2025 Form 10-K, filed with the SEC, states that Collins Aerospace is one of RTX's three principal business segments and describes it as a leading global provider of technologically advanced aerospace and defense products, confirming the FlightAware-to-Collins-Aerospace-to-RTX ownership chain traces to a NYSE-listed public parent.
FlightAware's privacy policy states that, with respect to its reports of business and commercial aviation data about aircraft-associated individuals, FlightAware sells these reports to its subscribers as part of its service offerings; the same policy tells California residents that FlightAware does not sell "Personal Information" and that the CCPA right to opt out of sale therefore does not apply.
In a notice filed with the California Attorney General, FlightAware disclosed that on July 25, 2024 it discovered a configuration error that may have exposed account data including user ID, password, email address, and, for some users, Social Security Numbers; the company states it immediately remedied the configuration error, required affected users to reset their passwords, and offered two years of free Equifax credit monitoring.
The FlightAware iOS App Store listing's App Privacy (developer-declared) section states that User Content, Identifiers and Diagnostics may be used to track the user across apps and websites owned by other companies, and separately lists Location, Search History, Identifiers, Device ID, Usage Data and Advertising Data as linked to the user's identity for Third-Party Advertising purposes.
FlightAware's privacy policy states that FlightAware and its third-party advertising and analytics "Partners" use cookies and other tracking technologies, including web beacons, device identifiers and pixels, to recognize users across different products and devices.