An ice protection system for controlling icing on an aircraft surface includes an OAT sensor configured to provide a signal indicative of an OAT, a LWC detector configured to provide a signal indicative of a LWC, an electrothermal device located on the aircraft surface, and an electronic control system configured to determine a critical temperature (TC) at or below which an anti-icing system will be used to preheat the aircraft surface, supply an electrical power having a calculated power level to the electrothermal device, and calculate the power level as being: zero if OAT>TC and LWC=0, controlled based on OAT and LWC if OAT>TC and LWC>0, controlled based on OAT and LWC if OAT 0, and controlled based on OAT if OAT