Wally Funk has finally traveled into space in the Blue Origin rocket over 60 years after being rejected for the Mercury 13 program.
The 82-year-old made history by traveling onboard the New Shepard - a sub-orbital spacecraft developed by Amazon founder Jeff Bezos - on July 20, 2021.
Funk is now the oldest person to ever go into space.
After earning her pilot's license at the age of 17, Funk became one of the Mercury 13 - a group of women who received privately funded astronaut training after signing up for the program back in 1961.
Per The Guardian, Funk volunteered despite being younger than the recruiting age range of 25-40, and at 21 was the youngest participant of the 25-woman-strong team.
Tragically, despite having the right qualifications and taking part in the project, she was prevented from going into space by the agency.
Not only that but she was subsequently turned back from three commercial airlines due to her gender.
However, she managed to make aviation history by becoming the first female US military flight instructor and the first female air safety investigator for the National Transport Safety Board.
But her lifelong dream was still to travel into space. Per AP, she stated in a previous interview: "They told me that I had done better and completed the work faster than any of the guys.
"So I got hold of NASA four times. I said I want to become an astronaut, but nobody would take me. I didn't think that I would ever get to go up."
Bezos announced that Funk would join the New Shepard crew in a post made on Instagram. She captioned the post: "No one has waited longer.
"In 1961, Wally Funk was at the top of her class as part of the 'Mercury 13' Woman in Space Program. Despite completing their training, the program was canceled, and none of the thirteen flew.
"It's time. Welcome to the crew, Wally. We're excited to have you fly with us on July 20th as our honored guest."
Accompanying Funk is Bezos himself, his brother, Mark Bezos, and 18-year-old recently graduated high school student Oliver Daemen.
Daemen joined the crew when the former winner of an auction for a place on the flight was forced to drop out due to prior commitments. At 18 years old, this will make him the youngest person to ever travel into space.
