posted 09-21-2019 10:41 PM               

My father had a sudden and massive stroke last year and went from the hospital into a long-term care facility where he will spend the time he has left. For some reason, he has a fascination with $2 bills. Whenever he gets any cash, he has the "bank" at the care facility convert ALL of it to $2 bills (they're awesome to indulge him by stocking $2 notes just for him). He gives them out as gifts to his grandchildren, tucks them into holiday cards for all the nursing staff, tips with them at the cafe in the facility, and so forth. Why $2 bills? No clue. But it's something he's really into now, which is great.

I think a flown $2 bill would be a really neat gift to give him. My father is also a long-time amateur radio operator who used to tell me about listening to the beep-beep signal of Sputnik on his ham rig each time it went over the States. So I think it might really engender some very happy memories and feelings for him if I could get an authentic flown $2 bill.

I don't think the condition of the bill really matters much, I'd be putting it in a display case any way to keep him from accidentally mixing it in with his regular $2 bills. Also, to be painfully blunt, his vision is not great — can't really see in his left eye since the stroke. But he would know that he had a very special $2 bill, and I think it would cheer him up some to have it to look at and show other people as a conversation piece.

posted 09-22-2019 09:32 AM               

From my research, your best bet would be missions for which more than one $2 bill was flown. Besides the museum's website, another good resource is Russell Still's book Relics of the Space Race.

Mercury-Atlas 6:

• Number of $2 bills flown: no more than 15.
  
• Serial numbers listed in Relics of the Space Race (mix of $1 & $2 bills).
  
• Signed on face of bill by Glenn and Carpenter.
  
• Presentation certificate with a matching serial number (shown on museum website).

• Number of $2 bills flown: 50
  
• Serial numbers listed in Relics of the Space Race (serial numbers for 46 out of 50 of $2 bills listed).
  
• Signed on face of bill by Grissom and Young (in red).
  
• Presentation certificate with a matching serial number (shown on museum website).

• Number of $2 bills flown: 5
  
• Signed on face of bill by McDivitt (in green).
  
• Presentation certificate from Novaspace.

• Number of $2 bills flown: 50
  
• Signed on back of bill by Scott, Irwin, and Worden.
  
• Presentation certificate with a matching serial number (shown on museum website).

posted 09-22-2019 10:04 AM               

I think the above advice is about the best — go for one of the missions that have more than a few bills flown on them, most notably Apollo 15. Still, you are going to be paying in the thousands for such a bill. They are highly prized.

Another option would be to try to acquire a bill flown on a later, non-Apollo flight such as to the ISS or on a private space flight, like the 10 bills flown on SpaceShipOne for the X Prize. While continuing to go up in value, they are still relatively affordable.

Alex Panchenko at USSR-Airspace.com has an extensive inventory of currency flown on Russian flights to the ISS, and still has one or two $2 bills from Expedition 7 flown by Yuri Malenchenko. You might try contacting him.

posted 09-22-2019 08:16 PM               

Just as the bill doesn't have to be in mint condition, it really doesn't have to be from any specific flight or program either. Soyuz, ISS, SpaceX, etc. would be fine. Doesn't even necessarily need to be autographed. The primary thing is that he will be given a $2 banknote that he knows has been in space.

I'm going to reach out to Alex as well as per your suggestion, Richard. Oh and I'm ordering the DVD/book bundle of the $2 bill documentary. I had never heard of it before, but I know he will really get a kick out of them.