United Technologies Corp. plans to raise $9.8 billion in thelargest U.S. corporate bond sale in more than three years to helpfinance its $16.5 billion acquisition of Goodrich Corp.

The maker of Sikorsky helicopters and Pratt & Whitneyengines, which last tapped the market more than two years ago, isselling debt in six portions ranging from 18-month floating- ratenotes to 30-year bonds, the Hartford, Connecticut-based companysaid today in a regulatory filing.

United Technologies, with investment-grade ratings from Moody'sInvestors Service and Standard & Poor's, is seeking to lurebond buyers as turmoil in Europe sends them to safer assets. Whilespeculative-grade bonds in the U.S. have declined 1.3 percent thismonth, investment grade is unchanged, according to Bank of AmericaMerrill Lynch index data.

“People are holding their breath” over rising speculation thatGreece will leave Europe's common currency, setting off a financialcontagion, Mark Pibl, head of credit strategy at broker-dealerCortview Capital Securities LLC, said in a telephone interview.“That's partially why people are jumping in here.”

Proceeds from the sale will be used to help fund the aerospaceand building-system company's acquisition of Charlotte, NorthCarolina-based Goodrich, which is expected to close by mid-year,and for general corporate purposes, United Technologies said in thefiling.

Elections in Greece

The company plans to sell floating-rate debt in two portions,including $1 billion of 18-month notes that may yield 27 basispoints more than the London interbank offered rate and $500 millionof three-year notes at 50 basis points more than Libor, a borrowingbenchmark, according to a person with knowledge of thetransaction.

United Technologies also is set to sell $1 billion of three-yearnotes that yield 80 basis points more than similar-maturityTreasuries; $1.5 billion of five-year debt at a spread of 105 basispoints; $2.3 billion of 10-year securities at 135 basis points; and$3.5 billion of 30-year bonds at 173 basis points, said the person,who asked not to be identified because terms aren't set. A basispoint is 0.01 percentage point.

European leaders are tying their next steps on the financialcrisis to the outcome of a bitterly contested election in Greecethat may determine whether the 17-nation euro currency splinters. Asix-hour summit ended early today with an exhortation to Greekvoters to elect a pro-austerity government on June 17 that makesthe budget cuts needed to keep the financially ravaged country inthe euro.

While relative yields on U.S. investment-grade bonds haveclimbed 36 basis points from this year's low on March 20 to 225basis points, they're below last year's high of 272 on Oct. 5, Bankof America Merrill Lynch index data show.

United Technologies' $1.25 billion of 4.5 percent notes dueApril 2020 fell 1.17 cents to 113.4 cents on the dollar to yield2.6 percent as of 11:44 a.m. in New York, according to Trace, thebond-price reporting system of the Financial Industry RegulatoryAuthority. The bonds have climbed from 111.9 cents on Sept. 20, theday before the Goodrich deal was announced.

The United Technologies sale will be the largest in dollarssince March 2009, when Pfizer Inc. sold $13.5 billion of bonds in afive-part offering, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

In its last sale in February 2010, United Technologies sold$2.25 billion of debt split between 10- and 30-year maturities,Bloomberg data show.

The offering of the bonds, which may be rated A2 by Moody's andA by S&P, both the sixth level of investment grade, is beingmanaged by Bank of America Corp., HSBC Holdings Plc and JPMorganChase & Co., the person said.

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