ContactGround

Features

Notifications

features/NOTIFICATIONS.md

This manual explains how Contact Ground notifications are generated, delivered, and controlled.

1. Where Notifications Appear

1.1 Notification tray (top bar bell)

  1. Shows recent notifications (latest items).
  2. Shows unread badge count.
  3. Clicking a notification opens its linked page and marks it as read.

1.2 Notifications page

  1. Open /notifications for full list view.
  2. Filter by All or Unread.
  3. Mark items as read manually.
  4. Open each item's View details link to navigate to the relevant page.

1.3 Replying to an organization message

  1. Organization message notifications (✉️) include a Reply button.
  2. Click Reply to open the compose page where you can type and send a reply.
  3. Your reply is recorded immediately. The original sender and recipients are notified within the next notification cycle.
  4. This lets members who opt out of email still participate in message threads.

2.1 In-app notifications

  1. In-app delivery is always created for targeted recipients.
  2. This means a notification can still appear in-app even if email/SMS/push methods are disabled.

2.2 Email notifications

  1. Sent only when Email Notifications is enabled on your profile.
  2. Uses your account email address.

2.3 SMS notifications

SMS is sent only when all conditions are true:

  1. Phone number exists on profile.
  2. Phone number is verified.
  3. The user accepts the SMS consent dialog when enabling SMS notifications.
  4. SMS Notifications is checked.
  5. SMS consent covers core platform notification types, including invoicing, organizational messaging, and flight operations alerts.

Full disclosure: /policies/sms-consent.html

2.4 Push notifications

  1. The profile has a Push Notifications toggle.
  2. Push is sent when:
    • Push is enabled on profile.
    • The mobile app has registered an active device token.
    • APNs/FCM server credentials are configured correctly.
  3. In-app notifications are still created even if push delivery fails.

3. Notification Categories

Category preferences are configured per organization in the profile Notification Preferences section:

  1. Schedule updates
  2. Weather changes
  3. Instructor availability
  4. Availability requests
  5. News updates
  6. Currency reminders
  7. Preflight dispatch timing (lead time before a scheduled flight)

Other notification types can still be sent based on workflow and role, including:

  1. Maintenance and squawk-related alerts
  2. Organization messages and replies
  3. Invoice notifications
  4. Account/trial/system notices

News Updates controls notifications sent when a new entry is published in News. When available, email, push, and in-app links route directly to the exact news entry rather than just the top-level News page.

4. How To Configure Notifications

4.1 Configure delivery methods (account-level)

  1. Go to Profile.
  2. Set Email Notifications, SMS Notifications, and/or Push Notifications.
  3. When enabling SMS notifications for the first time, accept the SMS consent dialog.
  4. Click Save for method changes.

4.2 Configure category preferences (organization-level)

  1. In Profile, open the Notification Preferences card.
  2. Toggle categories on/off.
  3. Choose your preflight dispatch lead time when available.
  4. Category changes save immediately.
  5. These settings apply to your current active organization only.

4.3 Configure preflight dispatch timing

Members can choose:

  1. At event time
  2. 15 minutes before
  3. 30 minutes before
  4. 45 minutes before
  5. 1 hour before

Notes:

  1. The default is 30 minutes before.
  2. This applies only when the organization is using Automatic flight operations mode.
  3. If a flight is created after its ideal reminder time, Contact Ground still sends one catch-up preflight reminder while the event is still upcoming.

5. Troubleshooting

5.1 I am not receiving notifications

  1. Check /notifications first to confirm in-app creation.
  2. Confirm the relevant category is enabled for your active organization.
  3. Confirm your delivery method (email/SMS) is enabled in profile.
  4. For preflight dispatch reminders, confirm the organization is in Automatic flight operations mode.
  5. For News alerts, confirm News Updates is enabled in Notification Preferences.

5.2 SMS is not being delivered

  1. Verify phone number status in profile.
  2. Confirm SMS consent was accepted when enabling SMS notifications.
  3. Confirm SMS Notifications is enabled.
  4. Confirm your phone number is entered in valid international format.

Note: SMS notifications can only be configured through the web site.

5.3 Email is not being delivered

  1. Confirm Email Notifications is enabled.
  2. Check spam/junk/quarantine.
  3. Confirm your account email is correct.

5.4 Push notifications are not arriving

  1. Confirm Push Notifications is enabled in profile.
  2. Confirm the mobile app has registered a push token (sign in again if needed).