Retirement Benefits (Tables)

12 Months Ended

Sep. 29, 2017

Principal Assumptions of Esterline, CMC and Other Non-U.S. Plans

Principal assumptions of the Esterline, CMC and other non-U.S. plans are as follows:

	Esterline U.S.				CMC				Other Non-U.S.
	Defined Benefit				Defined Benefit				Defined Benefit
	Pension Plans				Pension Plans				Pension Plans
	2017			2016	2017			2016	2017	2016
Principal assumptions as of year end:
Discount rate		3.75	%	3.60%		3.76	%	3.22%	1.40 - 8.75%	0.90 - 7.75%
Rate of increase in future    compensation levels		4.48	%	4.28%		2.75	%	2.75%	2.96 - 10.29%	2.96 - 10.13%
Assumed long-term rate of    return on plan assets		7.00	%	7.00%		5.19	%	5.66%	3.25 - 8.25%	3.25 - 8.00%

	Esterline U.S.				CMC
	Post-Retirement				Post-Retirement
	Pension Plans				Pension Plans
	2017			2016	2017			2016
Principal assumptions as of year end:
Discount rate		3.75	%	3.60%		3.51	%	3.16%
Initial weighted average health care trend rate		6.00	%	6.00%		5.80	%	6.00%
Ultimate weighted average health care trend rate		6.00	%	6.00%		4.10	%	4.20%

Allocations By Investment Type

Allocations by investment type are as follows:

		Actual
	Target	2017			2016
Plan assets allocation as of fiscal year end:
Equity securities	35 - 70%		58.4	%		56.4	%
Debt securities	30 - 65%		35.3	%		37.1	%
Cash	0%		6.3	%		6.5	%
Total			100.0	%		100.0	%

Net Periodic Pension Cost for Defined Benefit Plans

Net periodic pension cost for the Company’s defined benefit plans at the end of each fiscal year consisted of the following:

In Thousands	Defined Benefit									Post-Retirement
	Pension Plans									Benefit Plans
	2017			2016			2015			2017			2016			2015
Components of Net Periodic Cost
Service cost	$	15,108		$	12,861		$	11,811		$	385		$	342		$	359
Interest cost		15,553			18,095			16,159			335			473			464
Expected return on plan assets		(25,866	)		(24,491	)		(23,872	)		-			-			-
Settlement		21			2			3,522			-			-			-
Amortization of prior service cost		490			487			404			(5	)		(17	)		(63	)
Amortization of actuarial    (gain) loss		7,643			6,590			5,165			-			-			-
Net periodic cost (benefit)	$	12,949		$	13,544		$	13,189		$	715		$	798		$	760

Funded Status of Defined Benefit Pension and Post-Retirement Plans

The funded status of the defined benefit pension and post-retirement plans at the end of fiscal 2017 and 2016 were as follows:

In Thousands	Defined Benefit						Post-Retirement
	Pension Plans						Benefit Plans
	2017			2016			2017			2016
Benefit Obligations
Beginning balance	$	505,298		$	453,283		$	13,236		$	12,187
Currency translation adjustment		9,340			268			665			26
Service cost		15,108			12,861			385			342
Interest cost		15,553			18,095			335			473
Plan participants contributions		318			376			-			-
Actuarial (gain) loss		(11,420	)		44,136			(529	)		738
Other adjustments		(1,254	)		(859	)		-			-
Benefits paid		(23,687	)		(22,862	)		(550	)		(530	)
Ending balance	$	509,256		$	505,298		$	13,542		$	13,236
Plan Assets - Fair Value
Beginning balance	$	425,781		$	389,461		$	-		$	-
Currency translation adjustment		8,170			341			-			-
Realized and unrealized gain (loss) on plan assets		41,566			45,817			-			-
Plan participants contributions		318			376			-			-
Company contribution		6,681			12,041			550			530
Other adjustments		-			1,466			-			-
Expenses paid		(1,254	)		(859	)		-			-
Benefits paid		(23,687	)		(22,862	)		(550	)		(530	)
Ending balance	$	457,575		$	425,781		$	-		$	-
Funded Status
Fair value of plan assets	$	457,575		$	425,781		$	-		$	-
Benefit obligations		(509,256	)		(505,298	)		(13,542	)		(13,236	)
Net amount recognized	$	(51,681	)	$	(79,517	)	$	(13,542	)	$	(13,236	)
Amount Recognized in the Consolidated Balance Sheet
Non-current asset	$	4,267		$	2,395		$	-		$	-
Current liability		(1,840	)		(1,912	)		(669	)		(716	)
Non-current liability		(54,108	)		(80,000	)		(12,873	)		(12,520	)
Net amount recognized	$	(51,681	)	$	(79,517	)	$	(13,542	)	$	(13,236	)
Amounts Recognized in Accumulated Other Comprehensive Income
Net actuarial loss (gain)	$	78,713		$	112,420		$	476		$	975
Prior service cost		2,593			2,951			-			-
Ending balance	$	81,306		$	115,371		$	476		$	975

Estimated Future Benefit Payments Expected to be Paid from Pension and Post-retirement Benefit Plans or from Assets

Estimated future benefit payments expected to be paid from the pension and post-retirement benefit plans or from the Company’s assets are as follows:

In Thousands
Fiscal Year
2018	$	28,083
2019		29,835
2020		31,087
2021		33,212
2022		33,715
2023 - 2027		180,157

Pension Plan

Allocations By Investment Type

The following table presents the fair value of the Company’s Pension Plan assets as of September 29, 2017, by asset category segregated by level within the fair value hierarchy, as described in Note 8.

In Thousands	Fair Value Hierarchy
	Level 1		Level 2		Total
Asset category:
Equity Funds:
Registered Investment Company Funds - U.S. Equity	$	113,997	$	-	$	113,997
U.S. Equity Securities		54,640		-		54,640
Non-U.S. Equity Securities		50,395		-		50,395
Commingled Trust Funds - Non-U.S. Securities		-		48,377		48,377
Fixed Income Securities:
Commingled Trust Funds - Fixed Income		-		83,387		83,387
Non-U.S. Foreign Commercial and Government Bonds		-		77,931		77,931
Cash and Cash Equivalents		28,848		-		28,848
Total	$	247,880	$	209,695	$	457,575

The following table presents the fair value of the Company’s Pension Plan assets as of September 30, 2016, by asset category segregated by level within the fair value hierarchy, as described in Note 8.

In Thousands	Fair Value Hierarchy
	Level 1		Level 2		Total
Asset category:
Equity Funds:
Registered Investment Company Funds - U.S. Equity	$	104,075	$	-	$	104,075
U.S. Equity Securities		55,196		-		55,196
Non-U.S. Equity Securities		28,031		-		28,031
Commingled Trust Funds - Non-U.S. Securities		-		52,973		52,973
Fixed Income Securities:
Commingled Trust Funds - Fixed Income		-		82,627		82,627
Non-U.S. Foreign Commercial and Government Bonds		-		75,414		75,414
Cash and Cash Equivalents		27,465		-		27,465
Total	$	214,767	$	211,014	$	425,781