UAL Pilots Union Objects To Pension Bailout Plan -FT Monday January 3, 3:49 PM EST NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Pilots for United Airlines who belong to the Air Line Pilots Association will fight plans for an involuntary bailout of their pension plan, threatening to unravel agreements needed to bring UAL Corp. (UALAQ) out of bankruptcy, the Financial Times reports in an article on its Web site Monday. Their angry reaction follows a surprise intervention last week by the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corp., which runs a national insurance plan for all U.S. companies. The PBGC fears being held responsible for $6.4 billion of unfunded pension liabilities across United's four pension plans and decided to minimize losses by taking pre-emptive control of the pilots' plan, the FT said. But union leaders representing this highly paid group accuse the PBGC of singling them out for "vindictive" punishment, as the early move means they will receive $140 million less than hoped, the FT said. Duane Woerth, president of the Air Line Pilots Association said: "This is bad business and a deplorable move by an entity that purports to care for those who have earned pension benefits over decades of faithful service," according to the FT. The newspaper reports that ALPA said it would "vigorously oppose any effort by the PBGC to take over the plan before May 1, 2005, or to single out the pilot group for punitive and vindictive treatment in the United bankruptcy." The union also questioned whether the quasi-government agency was deliberately seeking to wreck union agreements with the company. "We are equally concerned about the timing of the PBGC action in the midst of a pilot membership vote over the tentative pilot agreement," the union said, according to the FT. "We question whether the PBGC's action may be designed to confuse the pilot group, undermine the membership ratification process and deprive the pilots of the benefits and protections of the tentative agreement," the union said, according to the newspaper. The PBGC rejected the claim, saying it was acting to protect the interests of all its member pension schemes, the FT reports. Dow Jones Newswires 01-03-05 1549ET Roger EWROPS