Wally Funk, an aviation pioneer and the oldest woman to travel into space, died Wednesday at her assisted living facility in Grapevine, Texas. She was 87.
Funk had recently fallen multiple times and had an infection in her leg, according to Grapevine City Councilwoman Duff O’Dell, who also served as Funk’s caregiver. O’Dell said she was with Funk when she died.
Funk was among 13 women pilots who underwent astronaut testing in the early 1960s alongside NASA’s male astronaut candidates. Despite completing the rigorous tests, these women were not permitted to become astronauts. Funk’s chance to reach space finally came in 2021, when she flew aboard Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin rocket.
At 82 years old, Funk became the oldest person to travel to space at that time, though this record was later surpassed by actor William Shatner and astronaut candidate Ed Dwight, both 90. Bezos invited Funk as an “honored guest” for the suborbital flight.
Blue Origin acknowledged Funk’s passing in a post on X, calling her a “pioneer in every sense of the word” and stating the company was “humbled to be part of her journey.”
O’Dell remembered Funk as an “eternally optimistic person” who faced significant barriers. "She was told by many, many, many men, ‘No, you can’t do this. No you can’t do that,’ " O’Dell recalled. "And she never got mad about it. She just was more determined."
Funk’s career included being the first female inspector for the Federal Aviation Administration and the first female air safety investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board, according to the City of Grapevine. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman also paid tribute on X, noting Funk’s lifelong dream of reaching space and her inspiring perseverance.