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MS-06FZ Zaku II FZ

Mass production general purpose mobile suit developed by Zeonic as the final Zaku II variant.
Jenxi Seow Published 22 Jun 2025 Updated 22 Jun 2025
MS-06FZ Zaku II FZ

The MS-06FZ Zaku II FZ (also known as the Zaku II Kai) was a mass production general purpose mobile suit developed by Zeonic for the Principality of Zeon. It served as the final production variant of the Zaku II series during the One Year War.

The “MS” in the model code designated it as a mobile suit, whilst the “06” indicated it was the sixth mobile suit design in the Zeon military’s development programme. The “F” indicated it was a fighter type optimised for space combat, and the “Z” suffix denoted it as the Zeon designation for the final variant (Kai meaning “modified” or “improved” in Japanese).

History

Late during the One Year War, the Principality of Zeon military started its United Maintenance Plan to upgrade and improve existing mobile suit designs and to make its own manufacturing capabilities more streamlined by incorporating similar parts and systems in several different mobile suit lines. One of the mobile suit types to be redesigned under this plan was the venerable MS-06F Zaku II, which had served Zeon since the early days of the war.

The MS-06FZ Zaku II FZ was one of the second-phase production mobile suits developed under the United Maintenance Plan, and the final production model of the Principality of Zeon’s Zaku II series in the One Year War. The performance of the Zaku II had begun to deteriorate due to the appearance of Federation mobile suits and the deployment of new mobile suits by Zeon, so it was tuned up by feeding back data from new models.

In addition, based on the results from the MS-06F-2 Zaku II F2 Type, the shape and materials of the armour and the balance of the machine were more thoroughly reviewed, resulting in the Zaku II FZ’s appearance being quite different from previous Zaku II F-Type models.

The new MS-06FZ Zaku II FZ, with an improved type of cockpit and greatly increased thruster acceleration, was a tremendous advancement over the standard F-type in terms of speed and manoeuvrability. However, one drawback to the increased performance was that the FZ’s operational time was reduced by half, as it used fuel twice as fast due to the added thrust.

And due to its late introduction into the war, only a small number of FZs were produced, with some operating in the skirmishes against the Earth Federation Forces stationed in the Side 6 area at the war’s end.

Design

The most significant modification was to the cockpit, which was said to have been so good that even new recruits with insufficient training could handle it. The industrial standards for this machine, which was produced under the United Maintenance Plan, were unified with those of the Federation Forces, allowing for easier maintenance using captured Federation components.

Furthermore, the apogee motors in various parts of the body and the thrusters in the backpack were increased and made larger, with the total thrust increased by 70 percent compared to the standard Zaku II F-Type. This gave the FZ exceptional speed and manoeuvrability, though at the cost of reduced operational endurance.

The mobile suit featured improved titanium ceramic composite armour that provided better protection whilst maintaining reasonable weight. The enhanced thruster system included three main thrusters rated at 24,500 kg each and two additional thrusters at 3,000 kg each, plus 14 vernier thrusters for fine attitude control.

The Zaku II FZ also had two different “helmet” designs. The more common “A-Type” helmet design was similar to the typical helmet of the Zaku II series, whilst the “B-Type” helmet, also known as “Fritz Helm”, was modelled after the Stahlhelm helmet used by the German army in World War II. The Fritz Helm was designed so that pilots of downed machines could remove the helmet dome and make repairs on their own.

Armaments

The Zaku II FZ’s standard weapons were the MMP-80 machine gun for ranged attacks and optional hand grenades for close combat.

MMP-80 machine gun

The primary weapon of the MS-06FZ Zaku II FZ. Compared to previous models, the MMP-80’s form and mechanism were completely redesigned, and the precision of its sight was increased. It was a 90mm calibre machine gun with a box magazine that held 32 rounds. A folding stock was located on its rear.

Though it was designed for the Zaku II FZ, the universalisation of manipulators enabled other mobile suits that integrated the United Maintenance Plan to use it. At least two variants of the MMP-80 existed: the Early Type and the Late Type. The Late Type featured a mounting point for an underslung grenade launcher.

Shield

A large composite armoured shield mounted on the Zaku II FZ’s right shoulder. When the machine was in the optimal attack posture, where the frontal projected area was the smallest, the corners of the shield were in front, maximising the defensive area and forming sloped armour to reduce damage from ricochets.

Hand grenades

The mobile suit carried hand grenades in a 3-slot rack mounted on waist armour. These could be either standard high-explosive/fragmentation or smoke/hide grenades, depending on mission requirements. The grenades were particularly effective in close-quarters combat scenarios.

Known pilots

Behind the scenes

Okawara Kunio was the original mechanical designer for the base Zaku II design. The FZ variant was featured prominently in Mobile Suit Gundam 0080: War in the Pocket, where it served as one of the main mobile suits.

The Zaku II FZ is also known as the “Zaku II Kai”, with “Kai” being the Japanese word for “modified” or “improved”. This designation emphasises its role as the ultimate evolution of the Zaku II design during the One Year War.

Appearances

See also