NEWPORT NEWS SHIPBUILDING FORMS WHOLLY-OWNED INFORMATION SERVICES SUBSIDIARY

NEWPORT NEWS, Va., December 18, 2000 – Newport News Shipbuilding (NYSE: NNS) announced today that it has restructured its Information Services division into a wholly-owned subsidiary. Named Naptheon Inc., the new subsidiary will enable better visibility and comparison of the information services costs; enable better alignment of the costs of information services to those using the services; and enhance the ability of Naptheon Inc. to compete for business external to Newport News Shipbuilding. The new subsidiary will begin operations January 1, 2001.

Incorporated in Delaware, Naptheon Inc. will be made up of approximately 500 employees who currently work in the Information Services division at NNS. NNS Executive Vice President and COO Tom Schievelbein will serve as Chairman of the new subsidiary and NNS Vice President and Chief Information Officer Stephen C. Hassell will serve as President and CEO.

Services provided by Naptheon include telecommunications, distributed and mainframe computer services and office services. Naptheon will be the exclusive provider of information services to Newport News Shipbuilding and will be located in Newport News, Va. In addition to his Naptheon duties, Hassell will continue to serve as Vice President and Chief Information Officer for Newport News Shipbuilding.

The name Naptheon comes from the Greek words "nafpeyeion" which means shipbuilding and "theon" which means excellence. The name was chosen to allow the new company to create its own identity while maintaining ties to its shipbuilding origin.

Newport News Shipbuilding designs and constructs nuclear-powered aircraft carriers and submarines for the U.S. Navy and provides life-cycle services for ships in the Navy fleet. The company employs nearly 17,000 people and has annual revenues of approximately $2 billion. Visit NNS on the Web at www.nns.com.