Modern Flying Space Voices Of Flying Women in Aviation

Wally Funk: Breaking the Glass Ceiling, All the Way to Space

The member of the famous ‘Mercury 13’ finally reached space at age 82.

Monday, August 12, 2024 at 01:59 PM ET

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The year 2021 saw aviation legend Wally Funk (pictured in 1961) finally fulfill her dream to fly into space. [Courtesy: National Air and Space Museum]

Key Takeaways:

During the early days of space exploration in the height of the Cold War era, an idea was floated to put an American woman in space.

The idea resulted in the famous “Mercury 13,” led by Jerrie Cobb and formed in 1960. Yet many in the U.S. believed that space was no place for a woman, and Russia would become the first country to produce a female astronaut. For many of the Mercury 13, an elite group of women aviators, their hopes were dashed. Yet one would touch space, albeit nearly 60 years later—Wally Funk.

Shalyn Marchetti

Shalyn Marchetti grew up immersed in general aviation at her family’s private grass strip, Applegate (15MO), in Missouri. After soloing in the family’s J-3 Cub, she pursued an airline career, earning her ratings through ATP’s Airline Career Pilot Program. She gained diverse flying experience as a flight instructor and King Air pilot before securing a first officer position with Piedmont Airlines. Now based in Philadelphia and flying the Embraer 145, Shalyn remains closely connected to her roots in vintage aircraft and hopes to one day perform at airshows like EAA AirVenture.