Why you need checklists (and why memory will fail you)
The Shuttle cockpit is a workflow. During ascent and entry, the timeline is tight, the workload spikes, and small mistakes compound fast. A checklist forces discipline: you verify configuration, confirm mode changes, and keep the vehicle in a known state. If something goes wrong, the checklist also helps you pinpoint where you diverged instead of guessing.
- Consistency: the same steps, the same order, the same results.
- Debuggability: you can identify the exact line where the run broke.
- Speed under pressure: you stop hunting for “what’s next” when seconds matter.
Two checklist types: Normal procedures vs “Pocket” contingency actions
Real Shuttle documentation often separates “normal flow” from quick-response contingency procedures. For a simulator, that split is still useful:
1) Normal flight procedures (mission flow)
These are the steps you execute to complete a phase cleanly: pre-launch setup, ascent, orbit configuration, deorbit prep, entry interface, approach, landing, and post-landing safing.
2) Pocket checklists (time-critical contingencies)
Pocket checklists are designed for immediate actions that must happen quickly to “safe” a system and continue the flight. They typically do not explain root causes; they tell you what to do right now, then send you to deeper malfunction documentation when you have time.
In practical simulator terms: a pocket checklist is your panic filter. It stops you from improvising when an alarm or unexpected behavior appears mid-phase.
How to use these checklists in S3 without wasting time
- Pick ONE phase (launch or entry) and drill it until repeatable.
- Read → act → verify. Don’t “pre-click” switches just to feel busy.
- Mark checkpoints: key moments where the vehicle must be in a known configuration.
- Log failures with brutal clarity: phase + step number + what you observed.
- Only then add complexity (more panels, more realism, more hardware).
Pro tip: keep a “clean run” copy (baseline) and a “working” copy (your notes). If you only have one file and you keep editing it, you’ll eventually break your own procedure.
Launch / Ascent flow (what a good checklist looks like)
A simulator-ready ascent checklist should be short enough to use in real time and structured top-to-bottom. The best versions include timing cues and “where to look” panel hints instead of long explanations.
- Pre-launch configuration: power, displays, comms/audio cues, navigation alignment basics.
- Terminal count: final switch positions, mode confirmations, critical warnings clear.
- Liftoff → MECO: monitor guidance/attitude cues, watch energy/trajectory, avoid chasing noise.
- Post-MECO setup: vehicle configuration for orbital ops, stabilize, confirm “expected” states.
- OMS burn(s): prep, execute, verify results, then transition to orbit configuration.
If your ascent checklist is 100+ steps long for normal flow, it’s not “realistic” - it’s unusable. Real crews had lots of data, but they also had formats optimized for action and speed.
Entry / Landing flow (where most sim runs die)
Entry is where people lose the plot because they treat it like a plane. It isn’t. You are managing energy, configuration, and guidance states while the environment changes fast. A good entry/landing checklist is built around phase gates:
- Deorbit prep: vehicle configuration before committing to the burn.
- Deorbit burn: execute, then verify you got what you needed (don’t “hope”).
- Entry interface: mode/attitude management and instrument scan discipline.
- Approach setup: configuration transitions and sanity checks before the final path.
- Landing & rollout: keep it simple, don’t invent late changes, then safe the vehicle.
Make the checklist read like a sequence of commands with verification points. If a line can’t be verified (some indicator, mode, or expected behavior), it’s not a checklist item - it’s wishful thinking.
Translations and custom versions
If you fly better in your native language, use a translated checklist - it reduces mental load. But do it properly:
- Keep layout identical to the base version so step numbers stay comparable.
- Don’t translate abbreviations blindly; many are better left as-is.
- Test the translation by running a full phase and marking lines that cause hesitation.
Rule: a checklist that makes you pause to interpret a sentence is a bad checklist. Rewrite it until it becomes “read and do.”