ICARUS Devices is proud to announce the U.S. Army is now its largest user. The rapid adoption has been led by National Guard units and 30 percent of states are now ICARUS users.

The Instrument Conditions Awareness Recognition and Understanding System (ICARUS) is a smart view limiting device that allows instructor pilots to simulate degraded visual environments (DVE) in the aircraft.

ICARUS changes visibility and allows instructor pilots to dial in the visibility for dynamic scenario-based training.

The ICARUS Device was granted fleet wide air worthiness releases for the UH-60L/M Blackhawk and LUH-72 Lakota earlier this year. ICARUS is affordable at $1,250 per device, allowing units to use their own purchase cards and safety funds.

ICARUS said the device provides Army aviators the most bang for their buck when it comes to training for instrument flight rules, inadvertent instrument meteorological conditions and weather aeronautical decision making.

“To be able to work with soldiers across the country and globe has been very fulfilling,” said ICARUS inventor Nick Sinopoli. “I often am dealing with incredibly experienced instructors who have thousands of hours and multiple combat deployments. I am usually taking notes and learning when I talk to them. Building a tool that makes them more effective instructors gets me out of bed in the morning.” 

Weather is large portion of most Army risk assessments and while ICARUS can’t change the weather, it prepares pilots for unexpected weather. Army helicopter crews often experience weather that differs significantly from forecast in remote training sites where they practice things like terrain flight, sling loads and hoist.

Over 400 ICARUS devices are flying coast to coast, enhancing initial and recurrent training in everything from a Cessna 172 to a CH-47 Chinook. The ICARUS Device team thanked all the instructor pilots, command teams and supply officers it has worked with for their dedication to soldier safety and reducing weather related aviation accidents.