US Senate To Weigh Pension Relief Bill To Aid Airlines Thursday April 21, 10:46 AM EDT NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--Major U.S. airlines may soon get the pension relief they have been stumping for if a bill introduced in the U.S. Senate late Wednesday goes into law. The bill, called the "Employee Pension Preservation Act of 2005," would allow airlines to spread their pension plan funding over 25 years, instead of the current four years. The bill also limits the liability of the Pension Benefit Guarantee Corp., a federal company that backs defined benefit pensions. In a press release late Wednesday, Sen. Johnny Isakson, R-Ga, who introduced the pension relief legislation, said the new rules would keep some major airlines out of Chapter 11, and help protect pension benefits for workers. The bill comes as executives from major airlines, including Delta Air Lines Inc. (DAL) and Northwest Airlines Corp. (NWAC) have been stumping for more time to shore up their underfunded pension plans. Those airlines face hundreds of millions of dollars in pension payments this year. Northwest issued a statement late Wednesday in support of the bill. Delta faces big pension payments during the next few years even though the airline froze its defined benefit pension plan and started a new, defined contribution plan. Northwest executives are considering similar moves. The bill requires airlines taking advantage of the rules freeze all or part of their defined benefit plan. Employees would be eligible for the benefits they've earned up to the date of the freeze but no additional benefits would accrue unless the airline pays for them immediately. Under a defined benefit plan, the company promises employees certain future retirement benefit levels. Under a defined contribution plan, the company contributes to employee retirement plans during employment, with no promise of particular benefit levels upon retirement. Before an airline can use one of the options in the bill, it must have an affirmative vote of its union employees. The Air Line Pilots Association union has expressed support for freezing old defined benefit plans and replacing them with more modern plans, and the union supports the new legislation. -By Elizabeth Souder, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-4148; elizabeth.souder@ dowjones.com Roger EWROPS