Although the Icarus smart VLD has been in development since 2014 (the device is the brainchild of Icarus founder and military helicopter pilot Nick Sinopolo), it’s only been out in the field for a few years. In a training environment that isn’t gentle on gadgets, there’s still a lot to learn and improvements to be made.
The Icarus smart VLD is a unique visor-like device that uses a Polymer Dispersed Liquid Crystal (PDLC) film that changes the wearer’s imagery, which is controlled by the instructor via an external battery-powered control module. There’s also a smartphone app to command the scenario-based IFR training—including gradual changes in visibility, and more realistically mimicking the real IMC environment. When we flew with the first-gen Icarus a few years ago for an Aviation Consumer report, we thought it was smartly designed and had a good app, but wondered how the visor frame would hold up.