L3Harris Technologies has removed Chairman and CEO Christopher Kubasik, effective immediately, after an investigation found that he violated the defense contractor’s code of conduct.
The company said Kubasik’s abrupt departure followed a board investigation conducted with the assistance of independent counsel. L3Harris said the matter was unrelated to its financial reporting, internal controls, customer relationships or operational performance.
Kubasik will receive no severance payments or benefits and no accelerated vesting of unvested equity awards, according to a filing with the US Securities and Exchange Commission. He will be allowed to retain and exercise certain stock options that had already vested.
L3Harris named Sam Mehta as president and CEO and appointed him to the board. Mehta had been leading the company’s Space & Mission Systems and Communications & Spectrum Dominance segments, which together account for more than 80% of L3Harris revenue.
Mehta joined L3Harris in 2023 after serving as president of Advanced Structures at Collins Aerospace. He previously spent more than 17 years at Sikorsky.
The board also named lead independent director Lewis Hay III as chairman.
The leadership change marks the second time Kubasik has lost a top aerospace and defense job following a conduct investigation.
In 2012, Lockheed Martin removed Kubasik just weeks before he was scheduled to become CEO after an ethics investigation found that he had maintained a close personal relationship with a subordinate employee. Lockheed said at the time that the relationship violated its code of ethics but did not affect the company’s operational or financial performance.
L3Harris has not disclosed the nature of the conduct involved in its latest investigation.
Citing two people briefed on the investigation, Semafor reported that Kubasik was removed after an independent probe found he had engaged in an inappropriate relationship with an employee.
Kubasik helped lead the 2019 merger of L3 Technologies and Harris Corp., which created L3Harris Technologies. He later became CEO and chairman as the company expanded across defense electronics, communications, space systems, propulsion and other military markets.
L3Harris has also played a prominent role in several recent US defense programs. The company completed the modification of a Boeing 747-8 donated by Qatar for use in the presidential airlift fleet and has been expanding solid-rocket-motor production through its Aerojet Rocketdyne business.
Despite Kubasik’s departure, L3Harris reaffirmed its previously issued 2026 financial guidance and said its operational and strategic priorities remain unchanged.