Remembering Wally Funk's pioneering spirit
Wally Funk, pioneering Mercury 13 aviator and oldest woman to reach space, dies at 87
Key Points
Funk graduated from Oklahoma State University and later received the university's Outstanding Female Pilot Trophy.
She was the first female flight instructor at Fort Sill in Oklahoma, marking a milestone in U.S. military aviation training.
In July 2021, Funk flew aboard Blue Origin’s New Shepard NS-16 mission with Jeff Bezos, becoming the oldest woman in space.
In 1961 she volunteered to be an astronaut for NASA’s Women in Space Program, a predecessor effort to NASA's astronaut corps.
In 1960, Funk became the first female flight instructor at a U.S. military base, breaking another barrier early in her aviation career.
Wally Funk, a trailblazing pilot who spent six decades smashing barriers in aviation and space, died at 87 at her home in Grapevine, Texas, according to KOAT. She logged more than 30,000 flight hours, trained over 3,000 pilots, and in July 2021 became the oldest woman ever to reach space.
Funk was a member of the Mercury 13, a group of women who passed the same grueling tests as NASA's original seven male astronauts in the early 1960s — yet were never allowed to fly. She had to wait 60 years to finally make it to space, KOB reported.
From Fort Sill to the FAA: A Career Full of Firsts
Funk grew up to become a one-woman wrecking crew for glass ceilings. In 1960, she became the first female flight instructor at a U.S. military base, Fort Sill in Oklahoma. She later became the FAA's first female flight inspector and the first female air safety investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board, according to Beaumont Enterprise.
She graduated from Oklahoma State University, where she later earned the school's Outstanding Female Pilot Trophy. Over her career, she taught more than 3,000 student pilots and racked up over 30,000 flight hours — a staggering total by any measure.
Mercury 13: Qualified for Space, but Turned Away
In 1961, Funk volunteered for NASA's Women in Space Program. She and 12 other women — now known as the Mercury 13 — completed the same physical and psychological tests as the Mercury 7 male astronauts. They passed. NASA still refused to let them fly, Seattle Times reported.
The program was shut down before any of the women could go further. For Funk, the rejection didn't end her drive. It just delayed it by six decades.
At 82, Funk Finally Reached Space Aboard Blue Origin
On July 20, 2021, Funk flew aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard NS-16 rocket alongside Jeff Bezos. At 82 years old, she became the oldest person ever to travel to space at that time. The flight lasted roughly 11 minutes and crossed the Kármán line — the boundary recognized as the edge of space.
KOB noted the milestone came exactly 60 years after she first trained to be an astronaut. Grapevine city leaders later praised her story as proof there is "no expiration date" on a dream.
A Legacy That Pushed Women Into Aviation and STEM
Funk's life became a model for women in aviation and science. Her firsts — at Fort Sill, the FAA, and the NTSB — helped open doors that had been firmly shut. She was inducted into the Texas Aviation Hall of Fame in 2024, according to Houston Chronicle.
Experts and officials say her story inspired generations of girls to pursue careers in science, technology, engineering, and math. She showed that the sky was never the limit — it was just the beginning.
Sentiment
Mostly NegativePublishers
16
Articles
133
Reach
149
