Union workers at bankrupt U.S. aircraft maker Hawker Beechcraft will vote on Friday on a plan that will prevent termination of an existing defined benefit pension plan, with Hawker to fund $195.3 million in unfunded liabilities for those pensions, Reuters reported yesterday. Hawker Beechcraft, which is owned by Goldman Sachs and Onex Corp is in exclusive talks with China's Superior Aviation Beijing Co on its plans to buy the U.S. company for $1.79 billion. The International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, which represents 3,500 workers at Hawker, is urging members to support the proposed contract change, which would preserve and freeze the existing plan, effective Dec. 31.
