This flight-ready article was prepared for the STS-2 mission and used in training at Johnson Space Center. It was obtained in the late-1980s from Astronaut Sherwood Spring (Mission Specialist, STS-61-B) during a visit to the Astronaut Office. At the time, Spring reported that the cards had been given to him by Bob Crippen sometime around 1985.
 
When originally obtained, the card came in a clear plastic bag with a “SAIL – Do Not Remove” sticker, indicating they originated in the Shuttle Avionics Integration Laboratory (SAIL)—the only place where actual orbiter hardware and flight software could be integrated and tested in a simulated flight environment.
 
Cue cards contain quick-reference abbreviations of the more detailed procedures found in the flight checklists. They list the basic functions the crew must execute during dynamics phases of flight when there is no time to refer to the full checklist procedures.
 
Printed on thick cardboard, the card features multiple hook-and-loop squares, allowing it to be attached to control panels in the cockpit for easy reference during the mission.
 
The Deorbit Configuration / Deorbit Burn Flight Rules Cue Card (double-sided) lists two set of procedures. On the front is a summary of the Deorbit Configuration, outlining all steps necessary to prepare the spacecraft and crew for deorbit and re-entry. Several hours before deorbit, preparations begin. The environmental control and life support system are adjusted, the payload bay doors are closed, the orbiter IMUs are aligned, the star trackers are deactivated and their doors are closed. The crew dons their pressure suits and prepares for the Deorbit Burn that will initiate the Entry portion of the flight. The back of the card contains the Deorbit Burn Flight Rules, listing several potential failures that might occur during the Deorbit Burn (left column), indicating the appropriate actions or delays for each case (right column). Potential failures in the Auxiliary Power Units / Hydraulic System (APU/HYD), the Data Processing System Hardware (DPS), Environmental Control/Life Support Subsystem (ECLS), Electrical (ELEC), Guidance and Navigation Computer (GNC), Payload Bay Mechanism (MECH), Orbital Maneuvering System (OMS), and the Aft Reaction Control System (AFT RCS).
 
Owing to their scarcity and direct association with mission preparations, training cue cards from the early Orbital Flight Tests are exceedingly desirable artifacts from the earliest days of the Shuttle Program.
 
This item comes with a lifetime guarantee of authenticity, as well as a Letter of Authenticity describing the item and its provenance, as well as an information sheet on the cue card and the SAIL facility.