Reston-headquartered General Dynamics will have a new chief executive on Jan. 1, 2027, after the board elected 25-year company veteran Danny Deep to succeed Phebe Novakovic.

Deep, 56, has served as General Dynamics president since December 2025. Novakovic, 68, will move to executive chairman after leading the Fortune 500 company since 2013. The transition marks the first CEO change at General Dynamics in more than 13 years, according to a company announcement on Wednesday, Oct. 7.

"I am profoundly honored to be selected as the next CEO of General Dynamics and humbled and deeply thankful for the board's confidence," Deep said in the announcement.

General Dynamics (NYSE: GD) employs more than 120,000 people worldwide and reported $52.6 billion in revenue in 2025, up from $47.7 billion in 2024, according to Virginia Business. The company ranked No. 91 on Fortune's 2026 Fortune 500 list.

Deep spent his career climbing through General Dynamics' operating divisions. Before his promotion to president, he served as executive vice president of global operations, executive vice president of combat systems and president of land systems. The board elected him as a member in August.

His promotion to president in December 2025 was seen by industry watchers as a signal he was next in line for the top job, Breaking Defense reported.

Novakovic, a former CIA officer who also served as special assistant to the secretary of defense, was among Virginia's top-paid CEOs in 2025, ranking No. 5 with about $25.9 million in total compensation, Virginia Business reported. She ranked No. 30 on Fortune's 2026 list of the world's 100 Most Powerful Women in business.

Under her watch, General Dynamics won the Navy's largest-ever shipbuilding contract in 2019, worth up to $24.2 billion, to build nuclear-powered submarines.

Laura J. Schumacher, the board's independent lead director, said the board thanked Novakovic for "outstanding leadership and lasting contributions" and expressed confidence in Deep.

The CEO transition comes amid other leadership shifts at the company. Amy Gilliland stepped down as president of General Dynamics Information Technology (GDIT), the Falls Church-based subsidiary, after leading the 26,000-employee unit since 2017, according to GovCon Wire. Paul Nedzbala, GDIT's senior vice president and chief business officer, was named interim president. No reason for Gilliland's departure was given.

Nick Barnaby will also start as senior vice president and general counsel on Jan. 1, the same day Deep takes over as CEO.