Privacy Policy

and

SMS Terms & Conditions

Effective Date: January 1, 2025
Company: The New Leading Edge LLC d/b/a Leading Edge Flight Training (“Leading Edge Flight Training,” “we,” “us,” or “our”)
Address: 5212 Cessna Drive, Loveland, Colorado 80538, USA

Introduction: Leading Edge Flight Training is committed to protecting your privacy and ensuring transparency about how we collect and use your personal information. This combined Privacy Policy and SMS Terms & Conditions (“Policy”) describes the types of information we collect, how we use and protect that information, and the terms governing our SMS communications with you. We make this Policy readily available (including via links on our website forms and footer) so you can easily find information about our data practices. By using our services or providing your information (including opting in to our SMS/text messaging service), you consent to the practices described in this Policy. If you do not agree with any part of this Policy, please do not use our services or provide us with your information.

Privacy Policy

Information We Collect

We may collect personal information from you when you interact with Leading Edge Flight Training, such as when you visit our website, sign up for services, schedule training, or communicate with us. The types of personal information we collect include, but are not limited to:

  • Contact Information: Your name, phone number, email address, postal address, and other identifiers by which we may contact you.

  • Identification and Regulatory Data: Information required for aviation training compliance with Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) regulations. This may include your date of birth, citizenship or immigration status, passport or driver’s license details, pilot certificate numbers, or other government-issued identification and background check information necessary to verify your identity and eligibility for flight training (often collected via our scheduling/point-of-sale system).

  • Training and Account Information: Details related to your flight training activities, such as student or pilot IDs, training progress records, scheduling and reservation details, flight lesson history, instructor notes, and any accounts or profiles you create in our systems (for example, within our flight scheduling platform).

  • Billing and Payment Information: Payment-related information needed to process transactions, such as credit or debit card numbers and billing address. Payment information is collected and processed through our secure third-party payment processors or integrated point-of-sale system; we do not store your sensitive card details on our own servers.

  • Communication Records: Copies of your communications with us, whether via email, SMS/text messages, phone calls, or in-person, including inquiries about our programs or any feedback you provide.

  • Website Usage Data: When you visit our website, we may automatically collect information about your device and browsing activity through cookies or similar technologies. This can include your IP address, browser type, device identifiers, pages viewed, how you arrived at our site, and the dates/times of access. We also collect analytics data about how you use our site (see Cookies and Analytics below).

We collect this information directly from you (for example, when you fill out enrollment forms, contact forms, or provide information in person), automatically through our website’s technology, and through third-party services that assist us in operating our business (as described in Third-Party Services below). We limit our collection to information that is relevant for the purposes described in this Policy and we do so in accordance with applicable law.

How We Use Your Information

We use the personal information we collect for legitimate business and operational purposes, and always in line with the reason it was provided. Uses of personal information include:

  • Providing Services and Training: To register you as a student or client, schedule and manage flight training sessions, aircraft rentals, and related services, maintain your training records, and facilitate your flight instruction experience. This includes using your information to create and manage your account in our scheduling system and to comply with FAA/TSA requirements for student pilot training.

  • Communication and Notifications: To communicate with you about your training and account. For example, we use your contact information to send appointment reminders, flight schedule updates, weather or safety alerts, training progress updates, billing statements, invoices, and account notifications. These communications may be sent via email, phone, or SMS/text messages (per your consent) to keep you informed about scheduling changes, upcoming lessons, maintenance issues, payment due dates, or other important service-related information. Our goal is to ensure you receive timely updates related to the services you’ve requested.

  • Customer Support and Inquiries: To respond to your questions, requests, and feedback. If you contact us (through a web form, email, phone call, or in person), we will use your information to communicate with you and address any issues or provide information you requested.

  • Billing and Transactions: To process payments for our services and manage billing accounts. For instance, we use billing and payment information to charge for flight lessons, rentals, or materials, to provide receipts or account statements, and to handle any refunds or adjustments. Payment processing is typically handled through secure third-party processors on our behalf, but we use your provided information to facilitate those transactions and maintain proper transaction records.

  • Legal and Regulatory Compliance: To fulfill our legal obligations, such as verifying identity and citizenship for TSA’s Alien Flight Student Program when applicable, maintaining training records required by the FAA, and satisfying other government reporting or record-keeping requirements. We may use and disclose personal information as necessary to comply with laws, regulations, lawful orders, and governmental requests (for example, verifying your U.S. citizenship/permanent residency before providing flight training, as required by 49 U.S.C. § 44939 et seq.).

  • Improvement of Services: To analyze and improve our operations and services. Personal and usage information helps us understand how our services are used, allowing us to enhance the quality of training, improve website functionality, refine our scheduling process, and develop new offerings. For instance, we might review aggregate program usage or website traffic patterns (through analytics data) to improve user experience or flight scheduling efficiency.

  • Marketing and Informational Updates: (No Third-Party Marketing Without Consent) – We may send you informational newsletters, promotional offers, or updates about our flight training programs only if you have opted-in to receive such communications. However, we will not share your information with third parties for their own marketing or advertising purposes without your explicit consent. Any marketing communications we send will include an option to unsubscribe or opt out. (Note: transactional or service-related messages as described above are not considered marketing and are sent as part of our service delivery.)

  • Safety and Security: To protect the safety of our students, staff, and assets. For example, we might use identification information to ensure only authorized individuals access aircraft or training facilities, and use account data to detect and prevent fraud or misuse of our services.

  • Other Business Operations: As necessary for other legitimate business purposes, such as internal accounting, audits, deploying updates to our website or systems, or in preparation for any business transactions (see Data Sharing and Disclosure below regarding business transfers).

We will not use your personal information for purposes unrelated to the services we provide without notifying you and obtaining your consent when required. If we seek to use your data in a materially new way, we will update this Policy and inform you as appropriate.

Cookies and Analytics

Like most websites, our website uses cookies and similar tracking technologies to ensure it functions properly and to enhance your user experience. Cookies are small text files that websites store on your device to keep track of settings and information. We use cookies to remember your preferences (such as your login status or language settings), to help our site load faster, and to understand how users navigate through our site.

Specifically, we utilize Google Analytics and related cookies to collect information about how visitors interact with our website. Google Analytics may record data such as the pages you visit, the amount of time you spend on each page, the links you click, and other browsing information. This analytics data helps us analyze web traffic and improve our site design and content to better serve you​. The information collected via Google Analytics is generally aggregated and anonymized – it does not include personal identifiers like your name or email, and we do not use it to identify you individually. For example, Google Analytics might tell us that a certain percentage of users viewed a specific page or that our site had a given number of visitors in a week, but it does not reveal who those users are​.

You have choices regarding cookies and analytics: Most web browsers automatically accept cookies, but you can usually modify your browser setting to decline cookies or alert you when cookies are being sent. Please note that if you disable cookies, some parts of our site may not function properly. If you wish to opt-out of Google Analytics tracking, Google provides an opt-out mechanism in the form of a browser add-on (see Google’s site for more information). By using our website without disabling cookies, you consent to our use of cookies and analytics as described in this Policy.

Third-Party Services and Processors

In providing our services, we may use certain trusted third-party service providers and platforms to operate our business efficiently. These third parties perform functions on our behalf and help us serve you better – for example, by providing scheduling software, point-of-sale transaction processing, or communications support. Below are key third-party integrations relevant to our operations:

  • Flight Scheduling and Training Management: We currently use a scheduling and student management platform called Flight Schedule Pro (and we are in the process of migrating to Flight Circle as our new platform). These third-party software platforms are used to manage flight reservations, instructor assignments, training records, and student account information. When you register for training or schedule lessons with us, your relevant personal information (such as contact details, training profile, scheduling history, and billing information) is entered into and stored securely on these platforms​. Flight Schedule Pro and Flight Circle are independent service providers with whom we have contracts; they have their own security measures and privacy policies to protect your data. We carefully choose such providers and require that they maintain high standards of data protection. While our staff can view and manage your information through these systems to administer your training, the data itself may reside on the third-party’s servers. We use these platforms strictly for operational purposes—e.g., to schedule your lessons, log training progress, and manage billing—and not for any unrelated marketing use by those providers.

  • Payment Processing: We use third-party payment processors (which may be integrated into the above scheduling platforms or separate) to handle credit card and financial transactions. When you make purchases or payments (for example, paying for flight instruction hours, aircraft rental, or course materials), your payment details are securely transmitted to our payment processor (such as a credit card processing company or bank). These third-party processors specialize in handling payment data securely and are PCI-DSS compliant. Leading Edge Flight Training itself does not store your full credit card numbers or sensitive payment account details on our own systems; such information is handled by the payment processor for your security. We receive from the processor limited information necessary for records (such as confirmation that payment was made, last four digits of a card for receipt reference, etc.).

  • SMS and Communication Services: If we send you SMS/text messages (per your consent, see SMS Terms below), those messages may be transmitted through third-party telecommunications or messaging platforms (for example, we might use an SMS service provider or mobile carrier gateways to deliver texts). These intermediaries are only provided the information needed to send the message (such as your phone number and the text content) and are not permitted to use your information for any other purposes.

  • Other Service Providers: We may also engage other third-party providers for various business functions, such as website hosting, cloud data storage, email service (for sending emails or newsletters), analytics tools (as noted above), customer relationship management software, or IT support. In all cases, we strive to share with our service providers only the minimum information necessary for them to perform their duties, and we contractually require them to protect any personal information we share and to use it solely for providing services to Leading Edge Flight Training.

Operational Third-Party Data Use: By interacting with us and using our services, you understand that your information may be processed by these third parties on our behalf. We do not grant third-party service providers any independent right to use or share your personal information except as needed to assist us (unless you separately consent to their terms, such as when you create a personal account with our scheduling platform). For example, if you use Flight Schedule Pro or Flight Circle via our program, your use may also be subject to the terms and privacy policy of that platform, but we will always ensure our use of your data via those platforms is consistent with this Policy and applicable law. If you have questions about our third-party service providers, feel free to contact us for more information.

Data Sharing and Disclosure

We treat your personal information with care and do not sell or rent your personal data to third-party marketers. In other words, information you provide to us — including your contact details and the fact that you have consented to receive SMS messages — will not be shared with unaffiliated third parties for their own marketing or advertising purposes​. We only share personal information in the following circumstances:

  • With Service Providers and Partners: As described above, we share information with service providers who need it to perform tasks on our behalf (such as scheduling software, payment processors, email or SMS delivery services, data storage providers, etc.). These companies are bound by contractual obligations to keep personal information confidential and to use it only for the services they are providing to us. For example, if we partner with an aviation medical examiner or an affiliated flight club as part of your training process (hypothetically), we would share only what is necessary for that purpose and only with your knowledge or consent.

  • Within our Company and Affiliates: The New Leading Edge LLC operates as a single business entity (Leading Edge Flight Training), and your information may be shared internally between our instructors, staff, and administrators who need it to perform their duties (for instance, an instructor will access your training records, or our billing staff will use your info to process an invoice). If in the future we form any corporate affiliates or partner entities, we will not share your personal information with them for their independent use without your consent, unless they are directly assisting in providing the services you signed up for under our name.

  • Legal Compliance and Protection: We may disclose your information when required to do so by law or legal process, or when we believe in good faith that disclosure is necessary to comply with applicable laws, regulatory requirements, or governmental requests (such as providing training records or identity verification to the FAA, TSA, or law enforcement upon a valid request). We may also disclose information as necessary to enforce our agreements or policies, to bill and collect amounts owed to us, to protect our rights or property or the rights, property or safety of our customers or others, or to resolve disputes and enforce our agreements (for example, providing information to attorneys or debt collectors if needed to address a breach of contract).

  • Business Transfers: If we undergo a business transaction such as a merger, acquisition by another company, reorganization, or sale of all or part of our assets, your personal information may be transferred to the successor or acquiring entity as part of that transaction. If such a transfer occurs, we will require the new owner to continue to honor the privacy practices described in this Policy with respect to your personal information (unless you are notified of changes and given an opportunity to opt out of the new policy). We will notify you (for example, via a notice on our website or email) of any change in ownership or uses of your personal information as a result of a business transfer, as well as any choices you may have regarding your information.

  • With Your Consent: In situations other than those above, if we ever need to share your personal information with third parties for purposes not covered by this Policy, we will do so only with your consent. For instance, if you request that we provide your training records to a potential employer or another flight school, or if you opt-in to receive information from a partner organization (say, an aviation university or an equipment vendor), we will share information as instructed by you.

In all cases, we aim to disclose only the minimum amount of information necessary to fulfill the purpose. We also take steps to de-identify or aggregate data when using it for analysis or sharing insights, so that individuals are not identified except as needed to provide services to you.

Data Security

We take data security seriously and have implemented reasonable and appropriate measures to protect your personal information from unauthorized access, disclosure, alteration, or destruction. These security measures include technical, administrative, and physical safeguards tailored to the sensitivity of the data. For example, our website and online forms are protected by HTTPS encryption (SSL/TLS) during data transmission, our internal systems and third-party platforms require user authentication and use encryption to store certain personal data, and we restrict access to personal information to those employees and service providers who need it to perform their work.

While we strive to protect your information, please note that no method of transmission over the Internet or method of electronic storage is 100% secure. Therefore, we cannot guarantee absolute security. You can help protect your information by using strong passwords for any accounts related to our services, not sharing your account credentials, and notifying us immediately if you suspect any unauthorized access to your personal data. In the unlikely event of a data breach that affects your personal information, we will notify you in accordance with applicable laws and regulations.

Your Choices and Rights

We respect your rights over your personal information and provide you with choices regarding your data:

  • Access and Correction: You may request details of personal information that we hold about you. If you believe that any information we have about you is incorrect or incomplete, please contact us. We will promptly correct any information found to be inaccurate or update it as needed. If you have an account in our scheduling system, you may also review and update certain personal details by logging into your profile.

  • Opt-Out of Marketing Communications: If you have opted in to receive optional marketing emails or newsletters, you can opt out at any time by clicking the “unsubscribe” link in those emails or by contacting us directly to request removal. We will process your request as soon as possible. (Note: You cannot opt out of receiving essential service-related communications, such as billing notices or safety announcements, as these are necessary for the operation of our services.)

  • SMS/Text Messages: If you have consented to receive SMS updates from us, you can revoke that consent at any time by following the opt-out instructions (see the SMS Terms & Conditions section below, specifically the “STOP” opt-out mechanism). We will honor SMS opt-out requests promptly.

  • Cookies and Tracking: As noted in Cookies and Analytics, you can control or delete cookies through your browser settings. You may also opt out of Google Analytics as described above.

  • Do Not Track Signals: Our website does not currently respond to “Do Not Track” browser signals, due to the lack of an industry standard. However, we treat any user data according to this Privacy Policy regardless of such signals.

  • California or Other State Privacy Rights: While Leading Edge Flight Training is not a business that falls directly under certain state privacy laws (such as the California Consumer Privacy Act, CCPA, or the Colorado Privacy Act) in most cases, we are committed to honoring the core rights those laws provide. If you are a resident of California or another state with specific privacy rights, you may have the right to request information about what personal data we have collected, to ask for deletion of your personal data (subject to our needing to retain required records, such as training records mandated by law), or to opt out of certain data sharing. We do not sell personal data to third parties (as defined under those laws)​. If you wish to exercise any rights afforded to you by applicable law, please contact us as described below. We will consider and respond to any such requests in accordance with applicable regulations.

  • Consent Withdrawal: If we are processing your personal information based on your consent, you have the right to withdraw that consent at any time. For example, you may withdraw consent for us to use certain optional information or to receive communications. Note that withdrawing consent will not affect the legality of any processing we conducted prior to your withdrawal, and it may affect our ability to continue providing you with certain services (e.g., if you withdraw consent to provide required TSA information, we may not be able to continue flight training services).

To exercise any of your rights or preferences, or if you have any questions about your choices, you can reach out to us using the contact information provided in the Contact Us section of this Policy. We will do our best to accommodate your request, subject to legal and operational considerations.

Changes to This Policy

We may update or modify this Privacy Policy and SMS Terms & Conditions from time to time to reflect changes in our practices, legal requirements, or for other operational reasons. When we make changes, we will post the updated Policy on our website with a new Effective Date and, if the changes are significant, we may provide a more prominent notice (such as a banner on our site or an email notification). We encourage you to review this Policy periodically to stay informed about how we are protecting your information.

Your continued use of our services or our website after any updates to this Policy constitutes your acceptance of the revised terms (to the extent permitted by law). If you do not agree to any updated terms, you should stop using our services and may request that we remove your personal information from our records (consistent with Your Choices and Rights above).

Contact Us

If you have any questions, concerns, or requests regarding this Privacy Policy or our handling of your personal information, please contact us:

Leading Edge Flight Training
 5212 Cessna Drive
Loveland, CO 80538, USA
Phone: (970) 669-1187
Email: info@leflighttraining.com

We will respond to privacy-related inquiries as soon as reasonably possible, typically within 30 days. Your privacy is extremely important to us, and we welcome your feedback.

SMS Terms & Conditions

The following SMS Terms & Conditions apply to our text messaging program. By providing your mobile phone number and opting in to receive SMS/text messages from Leading Edge Flight Training, you agree to these SMS Terms & Conditions, which are in addition to our general website Terms of Service and Privacy Policy. This SMS program is used strictly for informational and service-related communications as described below, and your consent will not be used to send marketing texts from third parties or affiliates. We value your privacy and time, and we strive to only send you relevant messages.

1. Types of Messages You Will Receive: When you opt-in to our SMS service, you will receive text messages related to your interactions with Leading Edge Flight Training. These messages may include appointment or lesson reminders, schedule changes or cancellations, weather-related alerts affecting your flight, flight training updates on your progress or requirements, billing alerts such as payment due reminders or invoice notifications, and other service-related notifications relevant to your training or account. For example, you might get a reminder the day before a scheduled flight lesson, a notification of an aircraft maintenance issue causing a reschedule, or a confirmation of a payment received. We will not send you promotional or marketing text messages under this program (any promotional content, if ever sent, would require separate consent). All texts you receive will be to inform you and enhance your flight training experience with us.

2. Message Frequency: The number of text messages you receive will vary based on your activity and engagement with our services. There is no fixed schedule or guarantee of a certain number of messages per week or month – instead, you’ll receive messages when they are needed for the purposes stated. For instance, during periods when you have several upcoming lessons or active training operations, you may receive multiple reminders or updates in a week; in other periods, you might receive little to no messages if you have no scheduled activities. Our goal is to keep messages to a necessary minimum. Message frequency may vary and is largely driven by your interactions (e.g., how often you schedule lessons or payments due)​. If at any time you feel you are receiving too many messages, please contact us (or reply “HELP”) to discuss or adjust your notification settings.

3. Costs and Fees: Leading Edge Flight Training does not charge you any separate fees to receive text messages; however, standard message and data rates may apply. This means that, depending on your mobile phone plan and carrier, you might incur charges from your carrier for sending or receiving SMS or MMS messages (for example, your carrier may charge you per text message or against your monthly messaging/data allowance)​. You are responsible for any such charges. If you are unsure what charges may apply, please check with your mobile service provider. We are not responsible for any text messaging or data charges incurred by you for participating in our SMS program. (Typically, these messages are treated like any other text you send or receive in terms of billing.)

4. Opt-Out (How to Stop Messages): You can opt out of our SMS notifications at any time if you no longer wish to receive text messages from us. To stop receiving texts, simply reply to any of our SMS messages with the word “STOP” (you can also text “STOP” to the specific number or short code we use to send messages). After we receive your STOP request, we will send a one-time confirmation text message to let you know that you have been unsubscribed, and after that you will no longer receive SMS messages from us. Please note that this opt-out only applies to our SMS communications – it does not affect other communications like email or phone calls. If you have multiple communication channels with us, you may need to separately opt out of those if desired. Should you wish to re-subscribe in the future, you may opt-in again by contacting us or by using any sign-up process we make available (for example, by signing up on our website or texting a designated keyword like “START” to our number). By opting back in, you consent to resume receiving SMS messages from us under these same terms.

5. Help and Support: If you need assistance or more information regarding our text messaging service, you can reply to any of our messages with the keyword “HELP.” When you text HELP, we will respond with a message instructing you on how to manage your subscriptions and how to contact our support team for further assistance​. Alternatively, you can reach out to us directly for help: call us at (970) 669-1187 during business hours or contact us through our website’s contact page. We will be happy to assist you with any questions or issues. (For example, if you are not receiving messages you expected, or you need to report a problem, contacting us will allow us to investigate and resolve the matter.)

6. Carriers’ Liability: Delivery of SMS messages is subject to effective transmission by your mobile carrier. While we send messages through reputable telecom providers, mobile carriers (e.g., AT&T, Verizon, T-Mobile, etc.) are not liable for delayed or undelivered messages​. There are many factors in SMS delivery (such as your cell coverage, carrier systems, and internet networks) that can impact timing. You understand that messages may be delayed or not delivered due to technical issues outside of our control. We will do our best to promptly send out messages as scheduled, and if we become aware of a systemic issue (like a known outage), we may use alternative means to reach you when possible. However, we cannot guarantee that you will receive every message, and we advise you to always confirm critical details (like lesson times) through another channel if you have any uncertainty. Carriers are not responsible for messages that are lost or misdirected.

7. Privacy: Your privacy is important to us. Our Privacy Policy (available at [Privacy Policy URL]) applies to the SMS service and describes how we collect, use, and protect your personal information. For questions regarding privacy and data usage, you can review our Privacy Policy​ or contact us as noted above. In summary, any personal information we obtain through the SMS program (such as your phone number and message history) will be handled in accordance with that Privacy Policy. We will not share your phone number or message content with unauthorized third parties, and we will maintain the confidentiality of your communications as required by law and our internal policies.

8. Terms of Service: All use of Leading Edge Flight Training’s services, including our SMS program, is subject to our general Terms of Service (available at [Terms & Conditions URL]). By opting into our SMS updates, you also agree to abide by our website/service Terms of Service, which include provisions such as limitation of liability, governing law, and dispute resolution applicable to our services. If you have not already reviewed our Terms, please do so on our website. In the event of any conflict between these SMS-specific terms and the general Terms of Service, these SMS Terms will govern matters specific to text messaging, and the general Terms will govern otherwise.

9. Changes to SMS Terms: Just as our Privacy Policy may be updated, we may also update these SMS Terms & Conditions occasionally to reflect changes in laws or how our messaging program operates. If we make material changes, we will provide notice (for example, by posting the updated terms on our website and/or sending you a text message notification if appropriate). Your continued participation in the SMS program after changes are made constitutes your acceptance of those changes. We encourage you to check our website periodically for the latest terms.

By opting into our SMS messaging service, you acknowledge that you have read and understood these SMS Terms & Conditions and agree to them. Thank you for being a part of Leading Edge Flight Training. We look forward to staying connected and providing you with timely, helpful updates as you pursue your aviation training. If you have any questions or need clarification on any part of these terms, please reach out to us at any time.