The US Congress has voted to approve a $15 billion rescue plan for the airline industry, which is reeling from last week's attacks on New York and Washington using hijacked airliners.
The House of Representatives approved the measure 356-54, joining the Senate which had passed it earlier with just one dissenting vote. President George W Bush, who has endorsed aid to the struggling airlines, is expected to sign the law.
Supporters said the plan, a bipartisan deal struck by congressional leaders, was vital to keep alive the airline industry after the September 11th attacks that left more than 6,800 people dead and closed the aviation system for two days.
With Americans terrified to fly, airlines have cut flight schedules by about 20 per cent and announced job cuts of more than 100,000 since attackers hijacked four planes, slamming two into New York's World Trade Center and a third into the Pentagon near Washington.
A fourth crashed in Pennsylvania.
The bailout includes $5 billion in cash aid, $10 billion in loan guarantees plus provisions to limit the airlines' liability for the crashes and to maintain their insurance coverage.
But critics charged that Congress had let down America's workers - especially the nearly 100,000 airline employees laid off in the past week - by not including benefits for them.
Airlines who apply for some of the $5 billion in grants must freeze the salaries of airline executives over 300,000 for two years.