ARLINGTON, Aug. 18 -- Sam Mehta began his first week as chief executive of L3Harris Technologies before most of the company's employees knew his predecessor was gone.

Christopher Kubasik, who had led L3Harris since 2021 and oversaw much of the integration of the company formed by the 2019 merger of L3 Technologies and Harris Corporation, was removed Monday after the board concluded he had violated its code of conduct. The board said the matter was "unrelated to the Company's financial reporting, controls, customer relationships or operational performance." It said nothing beyond that.

L3Harris shares fell approximately 3 percent in morning trading.

The departure has a shape that investors and industry observers have reason to find unse...