The PBGC, created by the government in 1974 to insure the retirement plans of U.S. workers, said it took over pensions of 4,000 employees and retirees at Honolulu-based Aloha.

Aloha mainly serves the Hawaiian Islands and the U.S. West Coast. The closely held company owned by the Ching and Ing families of Hawaii filed for protection from its creditors in December 2004 and shed more than $75 million in costs while in bankruptcy.

"The PBGC will ensure that participants in the terminated Aloha pension plans receive their benefits up to the limits set by law," the quasi-government corporation said today in a statement.

Under U.S. federal law, the maximum guaranteed pension for people retiring at age 65 in plans terminated by companies in 2005 is $45,614 a year. The amount is lower for those who retire earlier or elect survivor benefits, the corporation said.

The PBGC, financed by company insurance premiums and investment returns, insures the pensions of some 44 million U.S. workers. Defined-benefit plans at U.S. companies were under- funded by as much as $600 billion in 2004, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

Aloha Airlines' three defined-benefit plans, terminated in December, are 55 percent funded, with $190 million in assets to cover $345 million in benefit promises, according to PBGC estimates.