Wally Funk, the oldest woman to travel into space, dies aged 87

Wally Funk, the oldest woman to travel into space, has died aged 87.

Ms Funk died on Wednesday at her apartment in an assisted living facility in Grapevine, Texas, according to city councilwoman and friend Duff O'Dell.

An aviation pioneer, Ms Funk was 82 when she launched into space on board Amazon founder Jeff Bezos's Blue Origin rocket in 2021.

At the time, she was the oldest person to go into space - a record that has since been broken by Star Trek actor William Shatner and Ed Dwight, the first black American to be trained as an astronaut. They were both 90 during their space flight.

In the 1960s, Ms Funk was one of 13 female pilots - who became known as the Mercury 13 - to go through the same tests as NASA's all-male astronaut corps, but they were not allowed to become astronauts.

Mr Bezos, who chose Ms Funk as an "honoured guest" on his rocket, paid tribute to her in a statement on social media, insisting "dreams have no expiration date".

He wrote on X: "Wally Funk waited 60 years to get to space, and no one ever earned it more. She trained with the Mercury 13 in 1961, out-tested the men, and was told no anyway. She never stopped flying - 19,600 hours, thousands of students, a lifetime of firsts.

"Five years ago this month, I had the honour of flying with her on New Shepard's first crewed flight. At 82, she was fearless, joyful, and asking to go again before we'd even landed.

"Her dream took six decades, but it came true. Dreams have no expiration date. Godspeed, Wally."

According to a brief biography released by the City of Grapevine, Ms Funk was the first female inspector for the Federal Aviation Administration and the first female air safety investigator for the National Transportation Safety Board.

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In a post on X, Blue Origin hailed her as a "pioneer in every sense of the word", while NASA administrator Jared Isaacman said Ms Funk's legacy would endure.

Mr Isaacman said: "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."

(c) Sky News 2026: Wally Funk, the oldest woman to travel into space, dies aged 87