ICARUS Devices is proud to announce that the Army has issued the ICARUS Device and Airworthiness Release for the entire LUH-72A Lakota fleet. All Army Utility helicopters and 70% of the entire Army helicopter fleet can now use the Smart view limiting device for better weather training.

The Light Utility Helicopter is based on the civilian EC-145. The Lakota is the Initial Entry Rotary Wing/Basic Warfighting Skills Trainer at Fort Novosel and is used by the Army National for homeland security, disaster-response missions and medical evacuations. The Army has 463 LUH-72As.

The Instrument Conditions Awareness Recognition and Understanding System (ICARUS)is a smart view limiting device that gives Instructor Pilots the ability to simulate Degrade Visual Environments (DVE) in the aircraft. ICARUS changes visibility and allows IPs to dial in the visibility for dynamic scenario-based training. The ICARUS Device is simple to use and at $1,250 per system, it can be purchased at the unit level.

For Army Aviators, the ICARUS will improve training in three big ways. During Inadvertent Instrument Meteorological Conditions (IIMC) training ICARUS simulates a rapid reduction in visibility to evoke the startle effect and force an emergency transition to the instrument flying. Secondly, the ICARUS device enhances IFR proficiency by mimicking real world weather and allowing for additional training value throughout a training instrument approach. Finally, by replicating marginal visibility conditions all important weather decision making skills can be put to the test during planning and in flight, crucial for Pilot-in-Command check rides.