Kopin Corp., a Westborough-based manufacturer of optical and electronic display equipment, has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Army to develop a high-resolution eyepiece for use in a next-generation anti-aircraft missile.
Kopin has been tasked with developing the eyepiece assembly for the new Commanders Launch Assembly, to be used in the Army’s Next Generation-Short Range Interceptor system.
The Army has long-planned to develop this new short-range air defense missile system, a situation made more urgent by the shipment of older models of anti-aircraft missiles to Ukraine, according to a press release issued by Kopin on Wednesday.
“We believe the opportunity to supply our eyepiece assemblies for missile launch targeting and control systems provides Kopin with a significant expansion of our market, product base, production quantities and significant revenue potential of approximately $5 million to $10 million per year, for several years, once production begins,” Bill Maffucci, Kopin’s senior vice president of business development and strategy, said in the press release.
The NG-SRI system is meant to replace the FIM-92 Stinger, a portable anti-aircraft missile first developed in 1981.
The Russian invasion of Ukraine has led to skyrocketing demand for Stingers and other anti-aircraft weapons; Waltham-based defense company Raytheon has called in retired employees to help restart Stinger production, according to a June 2023 report from Defense One, a military-focused news website.
