Wally Funk, a pioneering aviator and the oldest person to fly in space, died on July 8 at 87. Funk was part of the "Woman in Space Program" in the early 1960s, undergoing astronaut testing alongside 12 other women known as the Mercury 13. Despite passing all tests and ranking highly, NASA did not select any of the Mercury 13 for its astronaut program.

Funk continued her aviation career, becoming a professional pilot in 1957 and logging over 19,600 flight hours. She also served as the FAA's first female inspector and an air safety investigator for the NTSB. In 1995, she was inducted into the Women in Aviation International Pioneer Hall of Fame.

Decades after her initial astronaut aspirations, Funk finally reached space in 2021 aboard Blue Origin's New Shepard on its first crewed flight. At 82, she set a record as the oldest person to travel to space, a record later surpassed by William Shatner and Ed Dwight. Funk's journey highlights the historical barriers faced by women in aerospace and her eventual spaceflight represents a late but significant achievement.