(Bloomberg) -- Shareholder Steel Partners Holdings is seeking to replace several directors of Aerojet Rocketdyne Holdings Inc. if the defense firm’s imperiled deal with Lockheed Martin Corp. falls apart.

There’s a twist: the fund proposing the shake-up is headed by Warren Lichtenstein, the current chairman of Aerojet’s board.

Steel Partners on Tuesday proposed a slate including three new director candidates: Heidi Wood, an executive vice president at CAE Inc.; Aimee Nelson, a finance professional; and Joanne Maguire, a retired aerospace executive. The firm is also nominating Lichtenstein and three existing directors, according to a regulatory filing.

The lineup does not include Eileen Drake, Aerojet’s chief executive officer and a current director.

Steel Partners said it remains supportive of Aerojet’s pending $4.4 billion sale to Lockheed, which is now in jeopardy after the Federal Trade Commission sought to block it in a lawsuit filed on Jan. 25. The board overhaul is intended to ensure Aerojet “is optimally positioned to continue the business as a standalone entity in the event the transaction is not consummated,” the investor said in the filing.

Read more: Lockheed deal with Aerojet is in jeopardy as FTC files suit

The New York-based fund said it owns a 4.9% stake in Aerojet, which would make it the third-largest shareholder, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. Lichtenstein joined the board of Aerojet’s predecessor, GenCorp, in 2008 as part of a settlement that saw two other Steel Partners nominees appointed as well.

Steel Partners, founded in 1990 by Lichtenstein, is a global diversified holding company with over $1.6 billion in annual revenue and more than 3,500 employees, according to its website. Its portfolio companies include Dunmore, HandyTube Corp., IGo Inc. and others. The investment firm has pushed for changes at several companies over the years, including at Sapporo Holdings, Endwave Corp. and Babcock & Wilcox Enterprises Inc., among others. 

A representative for the firm, which has stepped back from the spotlight in recent years, declined to comment. A representative for Aerojet, which makes engines for rockets and hypersonic weapons, couldn’t immediately be reached for comment.

Aerospace Expertise

Lockheed had sought to use Aerojet’s deep expertise in scramjets and other leading-edge propulsion systems for its line-up of hypersonic weapons. The $4.4 billion takeover, announced in late 2020, was the first test of the Biden administration’s willingness to allow defense-industry consolidation.

But in a blow to the merger partners, FTC voted unanimously and across party lines to oppose allowing the world’s largest defense contractor to take over the last independent U.S. rocket engine-maker. 

The acquisition would “harm Lockheed’s rivals in ways that would substantially lessen competition in multiple markets for products critical to the national defense,” the commission’s complaint said.

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