Pension and Other Post-Retirement Benefit Plans

9 Months Ended

Sep. 30, 2011

Pension and Other Post Retirement Benefit Plans [Abstract]

Pension and Other Postretirement Benefits Disclosure [Text Block]

PENSION AND OTHER POST-RETIREMENT BENEFIT PLANS

ABX sponsors a qualified defined benefit pension plan for its flight crewmembers and a qualified defined benefit pension plan for a major portion of its other ABX employees that meet minimum eligibility requirements. ABX also sponsors non-qualified defined benefit pension plans for certain employees. These non-qualified plans are unfunded. ABX also sponsors a post-retirement healthcare plan for its ABX employees, which is unfunded. During 2009, the Company amended each of the defined benefit pension plans to freeze the accrual of additional benefits. During 2010, the Company modified the post-retirement health plans for ABX employees to terminate benefits when a covered individual reaches age 65.

The accounting and valuation for these post-retirement obligations are determined by prescribed accounting and actuarial methods that consider a number of assumptions and estimates. The selection of appropriate assumptions and estimates is significant due to the long time period over which benefits will be accrued and paid. The long-term nature of these benefit payouts increases the sensitivity of certain estimates of our post-retirement costs. The Company's net periodic benefit costs for its qualified defined benefit pension and post retirement healthcare plans for both continuing and discontinued operations are as follows (in thousands):

	Three Months Ended September 30,												Nine Months Ended September 30,
	Pension Plans						Post-Retirement Healthcare Plan						Pension Plans						Post-Retirement Healthcare Plan
	2011			2010			2011			2010			2011			2010			2011			2010
Service cost	$	—		$	—		$	62		$	59		$	—		$	2,286		$	186		$	280
Interest cost	9,290			9,169			97			146			27,871			27,508			291			654
Expected return on plan assets	(9,757		)	(8,900		)	—			—			(29,271		)	(26,700		)	—			—
Amortization of prior service cost	—			—			(1,388		)	(1,250		)	—			—			(4,164		)	(2,917		)
Amortization of net loss	675			517			132			104			2,025			1,551			396			259
Net periodic benefit cost	$	208		$	786		$	(1,097	)	$	(941	)	$	625		$	4,645		$	(3,291	)	$	(1,724	)

During the three and nine month periods ended September 30, 2011, the Company contributed $8.4 million and $13.0 million to the pension plans. The Company plans to contribute approximately $5.0 million more in 2011.