Axios PM: Rusty pilots — Snowmobile boom — #SilverSqueeze

1 big thing: "Rusty" pilots get back to work | Monday, February 01, 2021

Open in app View in browser   Presented By Amazon   Axios PM By Mike Allen ·Feb 01, 2021 Good afternoon: Today's PM — edited by Justin Green — is 398 words, a 2-minute read. 🚀 Situational awareness: SpaceX announced its plans for the first all-civilian mission to space.     1 big thing: "Rusty" pilots get back to work A pilot pulls luggage while walking through a terminal at San Francisco International Airport in April. Photo: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg via Getty Images   Practice makes perfect: Airline pilots are anonymously reporting accidents and flying errors because of rustiness from long COVID-19 furloughs. Pilots blamed "at least a dozen flying errors and mishaps since May" on furlough-related rustiness, the L.A. Times notes. Why it matters: This is why the airline lobby argued it was better to keep crews on payroll so they could keep up with training, Axios transportation correspondent Joann Muller tells me. Flights are up since the lows of last spring and summer, but they're still considerably lower than pre-pandemic highs. The big picture: It's easy to take airline travel safety for granted in the U.S., which last had a fatal airline crash in 2009. But "the key to flying safely is frequency," Richard McSpadden Jr. told the L.A. Times. Between the lines: The FAA gave pilots more leeway last year on a rule that requires pilots to have performed three takeoffs and landings in the past year in order to fly commercial. That can be in a simulator or plane. The FAA said that the amendment was to lower the risk of spreading COVID.     2. Pic du jour Photo: Mike Ehrmann/Getty Images Aerial view of Raymond James Stadium in Tampa, ahead of Sunday's Super Bowl LV.     A message from Amazon Amazon's $15 an hour starting wage is double the federal minimum wage     The federal minimum wage has been stuck at $7.25 an hour since 2009. At Amazon, we raised our starting wage to at least $15 an hour back in 2018 because it's good for workers, good for business, good for communities and good for our economy. Learn more.     3. Chart: #SilverSqueeze Data: FactSet; Chart: Axios Visuals Go deeper: The silver rally has not yet materialized     4. Catch up quick Snowmobiles on a trail in Rangeley, Maine. Photo: Robert F. Bukaty/AP   Snowmobile boom: From Maine to Montana, it's becoming difficult to find a new snowmobile for sale, AP reports. New details: The 10 Senate Republicans seeking a compromise on a COVID-19 relief package released the toplines of their proposal. Go deeper. Ford will install Google's Android operating system on all new vehicles starting in 2023. Go deeper. A majority of concussions in college football occur during practice, according to a study published in JAMA Neurology. Go deeper. The Biden administration plans to review the Trump-China trade war: Based on publicly available data, it's hard to imagine they'll find anything other than a debacle. Go deeper.     5. 1 smile to go: Suburban shopkeeper renaissance People shop at Mill 77 Exchange at Market Street in Lynnfield, Mass. Photo: Craig F. Walker/The Boston Globe via Getty Images   The pandemic that's decimated so many urban downtowns has been a surprise boon for some suburban retailers, reports Axios' Jennifer A. Kingson. The big picture: People who used to snub their hometown merchants are enjoying the convenience of shopping local. "In Westchester, home to nearly a million people, tens of thousands are no longer commuting into the city every day," the N.Y. Times reports. "For suburban businesses that has meant new customers." The bottom line: Some 90% of Manhattan's office employees have not returned to work, a survey by the Partnership for New York City found in October.     A message from Amazon At Amazon, we don't just think big, we do big     Amazon is committed to investing in their employees by: Starting employees at $15 an hour. Offering health benefits on day 1 for employees. Investing $700 million to give them skills to help move into higher-paying jobs in their communities. And we're just getting started.     Axios thanks our partners for supporting our newsletters. Sponsorship has no influence on editorial content. Axios, 3100 Clarendon B‌lvd, Suite 1300, Arlington VA 22201   You received this email because you signed up for newsletters from Axios. Change your preferences or unsubscribe here.   Was this email forwarded to you? Sign up now to get Axios in your inbox.   Follow Axios on social media: