NEWPORT NEWS SHIPBUILDING, GENERAL DYNAMICS TERMINATE MERGER AGREEMENT

NEWPORT NEWS, Va., October 26, 2001 – Newport News Shipbuilding  (NYSE: NNS) and General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) today agreed to terminate their agreement and plan of merger.  The companies entered into an agreement on April 24, 2001, and a tender offer by General Dynamics was begun on May 4, 2001.

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 17,800 people and has annual revenues of approximately $2 billion. Visit NNS on the Web at www.nns.com.