iFly GPS Forum

Tinker,

I am sorry you feel this way. If you'd like please call me and I will work with you to help offset this downtime, based on your participation as a beta test and your value to our company. I would like to keep you happy and help you out during this medical downtime. I hope you will give us a chance to do so, rather than dropping us for a App subscription standard practice to find that most other have the same poilcy.

I think the misunderstanding here is that you are not buying the actual charts, rather the service from us to process data, update, develop, etc..

Now I'd like to explain this a little... and hope this does not come off offensive to anyone.

This is an industry standard practice for Apps, even in the aviation industry. The Subscription Fee if for the service we provide to process, geo-ref, develop feature, support, to update and continue use of the App, you are not actually buying the FAA charts. FAA charts can be downloaded for free from the FAA site. We are a service subscription. ForeFlight, Garmin, WingX, FlyQ, Naviator, AirNav Pro, Droid EFB, Xavion, and just about every other paid App I know of uses this same subscription model.

It's a different story for "portable dedicated devices". If you buy an iFly GPS model, you bought the device, and data that is loaded with. That data will continue to work indefinitely, just like any portable GPS in the past has done. Think.. all those Lowrance Airmaps, Garmin 296, 496, AV8ORs that are out there flying with expired charts. Trust me, there are a lot, I speak with them daily.

When a customer purchases the actual device from iFly GPS, Garmin, Bendix King, etc... they made a large investment in that device from that manufacturer. Customers have paid hundreds and thousands of dollars for their hardware from those companies. It's ethically wrong for a company to stop functionality, however some do. We will not!

Forward to 2016, A customer buys an iPad or Android tablet from Amazon or Apple, then downloads a free App. Pays $69 or $109 for a 1 year App Subscription. Is that customer expecting to continue use of the app and run with those charts, when the App subscription has expired? If App makers in the Aviation industry allowed the expired app subscriber to continue to use old charts, history has proven that a large number of pilots would simply fly on expired charts.

Finally, Please ask him what happens to his app when his ForeFlight Subscription Expires. He should say that it will not even open to the map, no 5 min period or anything. I know... mine just expired and the app opens directly to this page with no way to get out other than to buy a renewal.

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Shane Woodson
Vice President | Adventure Pilot LLC.

Without a medical you can only fly LSA using Sport Pilot privileges. In that case you only need a VFR subscription which is $69 per year. So for the 6 months you are acting as a Sport Pilot your cost is $35. Give me a break. What is the issue here?

I've been biting my tongue since the first post on this issue. Now it's time to speak up. I too, have had a medical issue that put me in the hospital for most of the past year. (Shane, you know who this is!) I have been a 700/720/740 owner since the beginning, and an iPad subscriber since it was available. Instead of cancelling my subscription, I kept it for 3 reasons
1) to keep up with the technology/advancements of the iFly team
2) to armchair (bedside?) fly to give any input I can for the Beta team
3) to support the Adventure Pilot company

I even maintained an IFR subscription during this time

I am a business owner too, and the most important asset is its customers. Stay loyal. It works both ways, my friends.

By the way, I recently started flying again after the accident I had!