US Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) has awarded Aeon Industrial a $13.8-million contract to develop, test and begin low-rate production of its Zeus missile system. The agreement covers weapon upgrades, initial safety and certification activities, and deliveries under the low-rate initial production phase. It will also assess the system’s potential for additional missions and integration with other launch platforms. The contract follows two years of company-funded development and marks the transition to the next stage of work under a formal USSOCOM agreement. Aeon is also developing a manufacturing facility near Austin, Texas, to expand its engineering and production capacity for Zeus and other tactical weapon systems. Zeus is a modular precision-strike weapon designed for compact deployment. Its shoulder-fired configuration weighs approximately 20 pounds (9.07kg) and measures 30 inches (72cm) in length, making it suitable for operations in confined and urban environments. The system’s modular architecture allows operators to change its warhead and seeker according to mission requirements and target types. It also incorporates Aeon’s ODIN targeting software, which the company says can identify and track potential targets, maintain persistent tracking, reacquire targets after temporary concealment and receive software updates at forward locations. Although the current contract focuses on the shoulder-fired variant, Aeon said Zeus can also be adapted for launch from vehicles, surface vessels and unmanned aircraft.
