# Box the Wind — Competition ballooning, easier > Hot air balloon competition flying map and tracking tool. (iPhone/iPad app by Jefferson Wagener.) - Source: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/box-the-wind/id6780908207 (this page in markdown: same URL + `.md`) - Developer: [Jefferson Wagener](https://appshunter.io/developer/6780908209) - Category: Sports, Navigation - Price: Free - Rating: 5.00/5 from 3 App Store ratings - Age rating: 12+ - Requires: iOS 16.0 · 13 MB - Languages: American English - Released: 2026-06-25 - Data updated: 2026-08-06 - Monetization: free - User reviews in markdown: https://appshunter.io/ios/app/box-the-wind/id6780908207/reviews.md ## What is Box the Wind? Box the Wind is for flying a balloon competition with a simplified IT layer. Fly, don't fight the computer or app. It's for the pilot in the basket and the crew chasing them. This is a competition-specific ballooning app, not a general one. Its features are focused on what the competition pilot needs, and no more. It is designed to fly next to the BLS and BLA setup and replace a cumbersome IT setup. Load the day's tasks, pick a target, and get live bearing, distance, and closest approach on your current drift. See the contest area, the prohibited zones. Crew sees both the ballon position and theirs. The maps work both online and offline. WHAT'S IN IT • Tasks, shared. Import a WatchMeFly task sheet via URL (web page or PDF), edit it, tap a target to make it active. Marker color, number, and timing sit right in the list. The crew can import the pilot's tasks whenever they change, or run their own version. • The wind cone. Your measured drift by altitude plus a forecast sounding, with an AGL bar showing which level heads toward the target. • Live tracking support for the crew. Position flows pilot to crew over a private channel in real time. A clear stale marker shows if the link drops. The crew's own position shows too. • Declare goals easily. Auto-find the 4/4 from the display center, or key one in during flight, checked against the contest area before you commit. • Zones and warnings. Import Red, Yellow, Blue, and Red-Road zones and the contest boundary. Audible and on-screen warnings fire as you approach or infringe, with per-zone ceilings and floors. • Offline maps. Download street and aerial imagery for your region before launch; it renders fully offline in the air. • Practice mode. Log electronic marker drops and get the 2D or 3D distance to the target. A training tool, not official scoring. • Recording. Every flight logs to GPX — replay, rename, share, or import. ... and more ... Built to BFA/FAI AX conventions: the UTM 4/4 grid, the standard task types. Show units in metric, imperial, or a mixed mode that keeps altitude in feet and distance in meters. Actually, for real, free. No account. No ads. No tracking. Your location is used only to show your position, recording and sharing only when you want. Actively supported and listening to requests. ## Key features - Offline maps for competition areas - Live pilot to crew tracking - Competition task import and editing - Real-time drift and approach data - Flight recording and sharing (GPX) - Wind guidance and updates ## Frequently asked questions about Box the Wind ### Does Box the Wind have ads? No, Box the Wind is completely ad-free. The developers have stated there are no advertisements within the application, ensuring an uninterrupted user experience. ### What devices is Box the Wind available on? Box the Wind is available for iPhone and iPad devices. It is designed to work on these Apple platforms. ### How often is Box the Wind updated? Box the Wind was last updated on June 25, 2026, with version 1.1. This indicates recent development and support for the application. ### What is the age rating for Box the Wind? Box the Wind has an age rating of 12+. This suggests the content is generally suitable for users aged 12 and older. ### Can I use Box the Wind offline? Yes, Box the Wind features offline maps that can be downloaded for your contest region ahead of time. These maps render fully offline, allowing use even without a signal. ### How does Box the Wind handle user location data? User location is used solely to show, record, and share the balloon's position when chosen. The app explicitly states 'No tracking' and that location data is not used for other purposes. ### What competition conventions does Box the Wind follow? Box the Wind adheres to BFA/FAI AX competition conventions. This includes using UTM 4/4 grid coordinates, standard task types, and considering minimum marking altitudes. ### What are the key features for competition flying in Box the Wind? Key features include importing and editing competition tasks, declaring goals with live preview, and real-time drift and approach calculations. It also provides wind guidance based on forecasts or entered levels. ## Version history (last 3 releases) ### 1.3 — 2026-08-04 New in 1.3 • A tools menu — the wrench beside the gear holds the wind cone, task-to-task info, and the new measuring tool. • Measure — drag a green and a red circle on the map for the distance and bearing between them, snapping onto a task target when you drop one close. One button moves an individual launch point to the green circle. • Task-to-task info (T2T Info) — connector lines between your task targets, each leg labeled with distance and heading, chained from the launch point in task order. • Nudge a target — long-press the active task target and step or hold-jog it with cardinal arrows. Step size is in 4/4 counts (Settings → Targets). A target you didn't move skips the confirmation. • Two wind lines per target — set each bearing on a dial or to the exact degree; both draw dashed across the screen through the target, in their own colors. • A clearer wind-cone scale bar — every altitude number now sits on the bar: ticks, both cone edges, your current altitude, and the exact altitudes whose drift heads at the active target. • Wind model picker — HRRR (default), ECMWF, or GFS for the winds-aloft fetch (Settings → Winds Aloft). • HDG and STR on the glance strip — your track over ground, and the turn from that track onto the bearing, left or right. • The winds-aloft table now reads TOWARD, with a direction arrow and both AGL and MSL per level. • Crew driving directions — in crew mode, a car button opens driving directions to the active target in Apple Maps or Google Maps (Settings → Targets). • Clear Task List — wipe the flight title, tasks, and import URL in one confirmed tap. • Wind smoothing settings — level-flight filter, memory, and vertical smoothing for measured winds, on a new Wind Cone screen. • Send a GPX straight to Box the Wind — share a flight track from another app and pick Box the Wind. It's added to Recordings and you're offered a replay on the spot. • Practice drops moved to the tools menu, and their 2D/3D separation altitude to Settings → Targets, which is now its own screen. • The active target now shows a mark even before there's a balloon position, so the crew can see the selected target while waiting for the pilot to go live. ### 1.2 — 2026-07-19 • Mixed units — a new default that shows altitudes in feet while keeping distances in metres and speed in m/s, the way most competition pilots think. Metric and Imperial are still there (Settings → Appearance → Units). • Crew position on the map — in Crew mode, see your own location as a blue dot, always separate from the pilot's balloon. • Share tasks with your crew — the pilot can push the day's task list to the crew with one tap; the crew is prompted to accept. • Launch Point — a pinned CLP/ILP task, drawn as a dotted circle and kept out of goal declarations. • Practice mode — record practice marker drops and see the scored 2D/3D distance to the target. • Targets with altitude — set an altitude on above-ground goals for correct 3D scoring. • Clearer markers — marker colour, number, and drop timing are surfaced right in the task list and beside the active target. • Appearance color pickers — recolour any map layer, or hide it with the transparent swatch; plus a Clear Track control. ### 1.1 — 2026-06-25 No release notes. --- *Data collected daily from the US App Store and indexed by [AppsHunter](https://appshunter.io/). User reviews are verbatim App Store reviews. Ratings, prices and chart positions refresh continuously; this snapshot is from 2026-08-06.*