Wally Funk, North Texas astronaut and aviation pioneer, dies at 87

GRAPEVINE, Texas – Wally Funk, a Grapevine woman who broke barriers as an astronaut and an aviation pioneer, has died. She was 87 years old.

Aviation Pioneer’s Passing

What we know:

Funk died on Wednesday night surrounded by loved ones, according to the city of Grapevine.

What they’re saying:

Grapevine leaders called Funk a beloved resident whose extraordinary accomplishments and generous spirit left an enduring legacy.

“Wally Funk’s unwavering determination proves that dreams have no expiration date,” said Grapevine City Councilwoman Duff O’Dell. “Her courage, resilience, and groundbreaking achievements continue to inspire young people—especially girls—to pursue careers in science, aviation, and space exploration. Grapevine is honored to call Wally Funk one of our own.” 

Wally Funk in Space

Oliver Daemen, Wally Funk, Jeff Bezos and Mark Bezos will be on New Shepard’s first human flight. (Photo credit: FOX)

In 2021, Funk achieved her lifelong dream of going to space with Jeff Bezos as part of the first human space flight of the Blue Origin New Shepard spacecraft.

She was 82 years old at the time and became the oldest woman to travel to space.

“Nothing has ever gotten in my way,” Funk said before the launch. “They said, ‘Well, you’re a girl, you can’t do that.’ I said, ’Guess what, doesn’t matter what you are. You can still do it if you want to do it and I like to do things that nobody has ever done.”

Career and Achievements

Funk has been a trailblazer for women in aviation and space flight since the 1960s. 

In 1960, she became the first female flight instructor at a U.S. military base.

In 1961, she was selected as a member of Mercury 13, a group of 13 women who completed NASA’s astronaut training program. They underwent the same grueling training as the male astronauts but were not allowed to travel to space.

Funk became the Federal Aviation Administration’s first female field examiner and flight inspector in 1971. She became the first female air safety instructor for the National Transportation Safety Board in 1974.

She’s trained more than 3,000 pilots and logged more than 30,000 hours of flight time.

In 2024, Funk was inducted into the Texas Aviation Hall of Fame. She’s also in the Women in Aviation International Pioneer Hall of Fame and the Mercury 13 Hall of Fame.

She holds the Guinness World Record for being the oldest woman in space.