NASSCO Delivers the M.V. Midnight Sun March 17, 2003 -- SAN DIEGO, CA -- National Steel and Shipbuilding Company (NASSCO), a wholly owned subsidiary of General Dynamics (NYSE: GD), has delivered the M. V. Midnight Sun to Totem Ocean Trailer Express, Inc. (TOTE). The Midnight Sun is the first commercial dry cargo vessel to be built in the United States in 10 years and the first of two new Orca-class trailerships being built by NASSCO for TOTE’s service from Tacoma, Washington, to Anchorage, Alaska. The M. V. Midnight Sun and her sister ship, the M. V. North Star, are 840-foot-long, 118-foot-wide roll-on/roll-off cargo ships capable of carrying highway trailers as large as 53 feet in length. Cargo decks are 360,000 square feet and able to carry up to 600 cargo trailers and 220 autos as well as oversized freight. The ships employ the latest in marine technologies, including twin-screw, diesel-electric propulsion that can achieve a speed of more than 24 knots. The ships’ cargo can be loaded and discharged in nine hours, with the speed and efficiency of cargo handling being an important competitive advantage for TOTE. "NASSCO is proud to continue to produce the highest quality ships for our customers and remain the shipyard of choice for commercial shipping companies engaged in U.S. ocean transport," said Richard H. Vortmann, president of NASSCO. "The two Orcas are designed to provide TOTE’s customers the safest, most reliable and fastest service to Alaska." The North Star will be christened on June 14, 2003, and delivered later this year. M. V. Midnight Sun and M. V. North Star have received several prestigious awards for their environmentally sensitive features. These awards include the States/British Columbia Oil Spill Task Force Legacy Award for 2000, the Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation Commissioner’s 2000 Pollution Prevention Award, and the U.S. Coast Guard’s William M. Benkert Foundation 2002 Environmental Excellence Bronze Award. In addition to the North Star, NASSCO (www.nassco.com) is currently building four double-hull tankers for BP Shipping Company of Alaska; and in October 2001, NASSCO was awarded a contract for the design and construction of a fleet of T-AKE dry cargo/ammunition ships for the Navy. Three ships of the 12-ship program are presently under contract. General Dynamics, headquartered in Falls Church, Virginia, employs approximately 56,000 people worldwide and had 2002 revenues of $13.8 billion. The company has leading market positions in land and amphibious combat systems, mission-critical information systems and technologies, shipbuilding and marine systems, and business aviation. More information about the company can be found on the World Wide Web at www.generaldynamics.com.

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