The ZAKU Phantom is a commander/ace pilot use version of the ZGMF-1000 ZAKU Warrior and features higher performance. Appearance wise, the ZAKU Phantom is almost identical to the ZAKU Warrior except for an additional shield on the right shoulder and a blade antenna on its head for C4ISR purpose (Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance). The armament of the suit is similar to the ZAKU Warrior, and it also has the ability to utilize the Wizard System to adapt to different combat roles.
After the end of the first war and the signing of the Junius Treaty, a new generation of mobile suits was needed by ZAFT to cope with the technological and numerical restrictions placed on the superpowers as part of the treaty. The ZAKU series's ZAKU Phantom was one such machine. An enhanced version of the standard ZAKU Warrior produced as part of the "New Millennium Series" of mobile suits, it is used by commanders and ace pilots. As a result, most ZAKU Phantoms feature a custom color paint job, although some Phantoms are painted in the same green color scheme as the basic ZAKU Warrior.