GRAPEVINE, Texas — Wally Funk, a groundbreaking figure in aviation history who held the record as the oldest woman to travel to space, has passed away at the age of 87.
Funk died Wednesday at her apartment inside an assisted living facility in Grapevine, Texas, located in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. Grapevine City Councilwoman Duff O’Dell, who described herself as Funk’s caregiver, confirmed the death on Thursday and said she was at Funk’s side when she passed. O’Dell noted that Funk had experienced several falls in recent weeks and was battling an infection in her leg.
“It took its toll,” O’Dell said in a phone interview.
Funk was among 13 female pilots who underwent the same rigorous testing as NASA’s all-male astronaut corps in the early 1960s through the Mercury 13 program — yet none of them were permitted to become astronauts. Decades later, in 2021, Funk finally got her moment in space when Amazon founder Jeff Bezos personally selected her as an “honored guest” aboard his Blue Origin rocket for a brief up-and-down flight from West Texas.
At the time of the flight, Funk was 82 years old, making her the oldest person to have ever traveled into space. That record was later surpassed by “Star Trek” actor William Shatner and Ed Dwight, America’s first Black astronaut candidate, both of whom were 90 when they made their flights.
Following news of her death, Blue Origin posted a tribute on X, calling Funk “a pioneer in every sense of the word” and adding, “We were humbled to be part of her journey.”
O’Dell remembered Funk as someone who refused to be discouraged, no matter how many times she was turned away.
“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.”
O’Dell described Funk as the “most eternally optimistic person” she had ever known.
According to a brief biography released by the City of Grapevine, Funk was also the first woman to serve as an inspector for the Federal Aviation Administration and the first female air safety investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board.
NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman shared a tribute on X on Thursday, writing: “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.”
