John Gamba to Retire from Bell Atlantic

John Gamba to Retire from Bell Atlantic

Senior Vice President to Depart Following Completion of Merger with NYNEX

February 25, 1997

ARLINGTON, Va. -- John F. Gamba,
a key architect of Bell Atlantic's
transition from a traditional telephone company to a competitive
telecommunications leader, today announced he will retire following
the completion of the Bell Atlantic - NYNEX merger. Gamba, currently
senior vice president-corporate resources and performance assurance,
departs after 35 years of service.

"John Gamba epitomizes the Bell Atlantic way of doing
business," said
Raymond W.
Smith, chairman and CEO, Bell Atlantic. "John agreed to
delay his retirement plans to help us with some critical merger issues
and ensure the basis for the new company is in place. We all wish him
well in the future."

Gamba said his departure will enable him to devote time to new
business opportunities. He is a longtime member of the board of
directors of Bellcore, and played an important role in the company's
pending sale, announced last November. He's also chairman of the
board of Gandalf Technologies, Inc., and is a member of the board of
trustees of Capitol College in Laurel, Md.

"It has been a privilege to be involved in Bell Atlantic's
transformation into an industry leader that will compete in global
markets," Gamba said. "I know that wherever we serve our
customers,
Bell Atlantic will be the world's best provider of communications and
information services."

Gamba began his career with Bell of Pennsylvania as a management
trainee. He advanced through the ranks at Bell of Pennsylvania and
AT&T in operations, engineering, external affairs, systems
development
and labor relations before being appointed vice president of
Information Systems for Bell Atlantic in 1986.

In 1988, he was named vice president and chief financial officer for
the Bell Atlantic telephone companies in Maryland, Virginia, West
Virginia, and Washington, D.C. In 1990, he became the executive vice
president for Bell Atlantic Network Services, Inc. Following that
assignment, Gamba served as group president - network technologies and
systems. He was appointed to his current position in 1995.

In 1995, Gamba was selected as a national Malcolm Baldrige Quality
Award examiner.

Gamba received a B.S. degree in economics from the University of
Pennsylvania's Wharton School and holds an M.B.A. degree from Drexel
University.

Bell Atlantic Corp. (NYSE: BEL) is
at the forefront of the new
communications, entertainment and information industry. In the
mid-Atlantic region, the company is the premier provider of local
telecommunications and advanced services. Globally, it is one of the
largest investors in the high-growth wireless communication
marketplace. Bell Atlantic also owns a substantial interest in
Telecom Corporation of New Zealand and is actively developing
high-growth national and international business opportunities in all
phases of the industry.

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