Wally Funk, aviation pioneer who was the oldest woman to travel into
space, dies at 87
[July 10, 2026]
GRAPEVINE, Texas (AP) — Wally Funk, an aviation pioneer who was the
oldest woman to launch into space, has died. She was 87.
Funk died Wednesday at her apartment in an assisted living facility in
the Dallas and Fort Worth suburb of Grapevine, Texas, Grapevine City
Councilwoman Duff O'Dell said Thursday. O'Dell, who described herself as
Funk's caregiver, said she was by Funk's side. Funk had fallen a couple
of times recently and had an infection in her leg. |
Wally Funk, right, describes her flight experience as Mark Bezos, left,
and Jeff Bezos, left, center, applaud in the spaceport near Van Horn,
Texas, July 20, 2021. (AP Photo/Tony Gutierrez, File) |
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“It took its toll,” O'Dell said in a phone interview.
Funk was one of 13 female pilots who went through the same tests
as NASA’s all-male astronaut corps in the early 1960s but never
made it into space with that agency. In 2021, she got her chance
aboard Amazon founder Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin rocket.
At the time, the 82-year-old was the oldest person to go into
space, though the record was later broken by “Star Trek” actor
William Shatner and Ed Dwight, America’s first Black astronaut
candidate. They were both 90.
Bezos chose Funk as an “honored guest” to ride alongside him and
two others on an up-and-down hop from West Texas.
In a post on X, Blue Origin said Funk was a “pioneer in every
sense of the word.”
“We were humbled to be part of her journey,” the post said.
O’Dell said Funk was the “most eternally optimistic person” she
had ever met.
“She was told by many, many, many men, ‘No, you can’t do this.
No you can’t do that,’ ” O’Dell said. “And she never got mad
about it. She just was more determined.”
Funk was the first female inspector for the Federal Aviation
Administration and the first female air safety investigator for
the National Transportation Safety Board, according to a brief
biography released by the City of Grapevine.
In the 1960s, she and other female pilots went through astronaut
training in the Mercury 13 program, but they were not allowed to
become astronauts.
“Wally Funk never stopped believing that one day she would reach
space. Her passion for flight, perseverance, and love of
exploration will continue to inspire generations of Americans.
Godspeed, Wally,” NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman posted
Thursday on X.
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