Flight Update Pro 4+

Awesome Flight Tracker

As a pilot for a major airline, this is one of my daily tools. Fast, easy data entry, and easy to read info make this the best app of its kind. I fly about 10 flights every week, and it mirrors my schedule to my calendar for my family to keep up with my frequent schedule changes. Bad weather? Canceled flight? Just search for all available flights, or for a specific airline, it's all easy with this app. Even check to see when the incoming flight will arrive at your gate, or check seating charts before you book. I use it all day, every day at work (gate change notifications!). Better than any app my fellow pilots have shown me. My recommendation is to get the Pro version. For a few dollars it gives you push notifications for gate changes, etc. could save you a long walk or a missed flight. That's worth a few bucks!

Update: have been using this app for a few years now. Previous versions have had a few minor glitches, but the latest version seems to have fixed everything. I'm 30 years into this airline career with one of the big 3, and this app is faster than what my own airline provides for us. It's still my go-to source for quick gate and weather info. I have over 300 separate trips in the history in this app - each one has from 1 to 4 or more days of flying. I highly recommend it for both flight crew and passengers.

Easily the best Flight Tracking App

Update to my review: Not only does this app continue to surpass every other one in the category, the developer is extremely fast at responding to any questions. This is a well made, well supported app. Definitely worth a full five star rating.

I have used this app for a number of years now. My wife is a Fight Attendant for a major US carrier, and this app has proved invaluable for us both to track her trips. Enter the flights once into the app and have it automatically update a shared calendar and all her trips appear on both of our iPhones. Unlike other apps it also updates the calendars when trips are changed. It is easy to enter the data, easy to use and accurate. The developer has obviously paid very close attention to usability, and is extremely responsive to emails for bug reports (of which there are very few!) and even suggestions for improvement. Cannot recommend this app highly enough. Easily worth every penny.

Subscription Will Be This Apps Demise

I am part of the Beta testers of this app and used it for years. I paid the $9.99 fee to track all flights and they have switched to a monthly fee to track your flights. Poor communication regarding the new business model to generate revenue. As a customer this feels greedy and nothing more than a cash grab. This was not the app model I paid for and it will ultimately be the demise of a great app. I am leaving for greener pastures that do not milk their customers.

As I categorize the comments by date I see the trend as this app will go from 5stars to 3 within months. To the developer, listen to your customers. If your subscription service is now pay per use as you have stated, you may need to switch providers, even if it’s a lesser product. You are jumping over dollars to get to nickles and you will ultimately lose your customer base. I have been a vocal advocate of this app and turned countless people into it, I no longer can do that for you. Best of luck - stop the bleeding before it’s too late, this app is very lucrative for you, find a way to sustain it in the old model before you lose it. We all remember what happened to FlightTrack Pro, learn from others failures (I realize it is a different scenario, but the lack of vision is the same)

Developer Response ,

Maletvette, I would like to address the points you made in your review.
Firstly, the change to the pricing is NOT a cash grab. It is exactly the opposite. If you have ready my many responses to other users you are then aware that this change was our only option other than shutting down the app. The app has been losing money for over 3 years due to the fact that the pricing structure was change from a fixed cost to a per transaction cost when the flight status and schedule service was bought out.

Simply stated, the change will allow the app to continue. No longer would will the app generate severe loses. We just could not cover this any longer.

You state that the app was lucrative and that this was some attempt at making it more so. This is FALSE. The app was NOT lucrative but rather lost money, quite a bit. Since the pricing structure changed three years ago the app was bleeding (to use your analogy) money terribly. We tried different things but in the end the current change was the only thing that would allow the app to continue.

With regards to changing to another service, that was out of the question. We have been with this service since 2008 when Flight Update Pro was launched. This service is by FAR the BEST service available. To use a lesser service to save money was not something I considered and I wonder why you would suggest that. You mention our rating is going down. But the only reason this is the case is becasue people are upset over the cost. NO one has mentioned the quality of the app. Actually there have been a few but they were simply smering the app out of anger as they clearly would not have continued to use the app for year after year. It has been over 10 years that this app has been perfected and in conjunciton with the BEST flight status service it really is the top choice.

Lastly, as for Flight Track Pro, they were up against the SAME problem as they used the service we still use today. You stated there circumstance was different. It was not. They decided to shutdown the app rather and leave their customers hanging (this happened at the precise time the pricing structure for the flgiht status service changed). We instead came up with the most economical solution and still allow the app to continue to service.

You state we should have found a way to sustain the old pricing model. Believe me, I did. But if you lose money on every purchase you cannot make it up in volume. There is simply NO way to reconcile a fixed price when we are charged for every transaction we make to the service. Airline pilots typically would be tracking hundreds of flights per month causing severe loses. Ironically airline pilots have been the most vocal critic of the change.

You mention you were a beta tester for the app but your name does not look familiar nor can I find you in our records. But if you had been you would know my commitment (as the author of the app) is steadfast and it would have been heartbreaking to shut the app down.