Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz, a blond woman dressed in a green flightsuit, inspecting the wing of her blue L-39 albatross jet.

Jet-setting through life

An unlikely journey to a remarkable life as a professional bizjet pilot, Fortune 500 coach and cabaret singer all lit by the bright lights of Las Vegas.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz, a blond woman dressed in a green flightsuit, inspecting the wing of her blue L-39 albatross jet.

Las Vegas, Nevada

“Growing up in Minnesota was just fantastic,” professional pilot Stephanie Goetz says, sounding a little like an Oz-bound Dorothy reminiscing about her life in Kansas. Even as a kid, Goetz said, “while I cherished being by the Mississippi River, surrounded by great people and those solid Midwest values, I always craved the excitement of a bigger city like Minneapolis. But I also understand how that shaped who I am today.”

Still, even with a few seeming false starts, those early sensibilities helped direct an unlikely journey to a remarkable life as a professional bizjet pilot, Fortune 500 coach and cabaret singer all lit by the bright lights of Las Vegas.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing on the steps of her L-39 Albatross jet reaching above her to pull the canopy down. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing on the steps of her L-39 Albatross jet reaching above her to pull the canopy down. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing on the steps of her L-39 Albatross jet reaching above her to pull the canopy down. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing on the steps of her L-39 Albatross jet reaching above her to pull the canopy down. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.

Variety is the Spice of Life

Still, even with a few seeming false starts, those early sensibilities helped direct an unlikely journey to a remarkable life as a professional bizjet pilot, Fortune 500 coach and cabaret singer all lit by the bright lights of Las Vegas. 

After studying briefly, very briefly, to be a pharmacist like her dad, she pivoted hard. “I sat in my first chemistry class and thought, ‘I can’t do this for the next six years!’ So, she switched to, wait for it, sports broadcasting. 
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz singing on stage. She is a blonde woman wearing a short sparkly dress and she is holding a microphone in her right hand up to her mouth. Her band is playing behind her.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz singing on stage. She is a blonde woman wearing a short sparkly dress and she is holding a microphone in her right hand up to her mouth. Her band is playing behind her.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz singing on stage. She is a blonde woman wearing a short sparkly dress and she is holding a microphone in her right hand up to her mouth. Her band is playing behind her.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz singing on stage. She is a blonde woman wearing a short sparkly dress and she is holding a microphone in her right hand up to her mouth. Her band is playing behind her.

On Camera

After earning a degree in that, she made a smaller pivot, soon finding her groove as a headline news anchor, working at ABC, CBS, and NBC affiliates for more than a decade. “I think I did around 5,000 newscasts!” she says with equal parts disbelief and pride. 

And then, while she was still firmly anchored at the news desk, out of the blue she got a call that changed everything. It was from a local, 80-year-old flight instructor who offered to take her on a “discovery flight.” She of course said, “yes.” “The moment we lifted off,” she remembers, “it was my new passion.”
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing in front of her L-39 Albatross jet looking off into the distance to her left and holding her helmet. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing in front of her L-39 Albatross jet looking off into the distance to her left and holding her helmet. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing in front of her L-39 Albatross jet looking off into the distance to her left and holding her helmet. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing in front of her L-39 Albatross jet looking off into the distance to her left and holding her helmet. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.

A Pivot Skyward

She dove in headfirst, in five years pocketing multiple certifications, each an intensive and demanding course of ground and flight study. If that sounds like a full plate for a mid-life career change, you’re right. “It felt like I was drinking from a fire hose every day!” she said, but while there moments she felt like giving up, she persevered, another skill she learned working her way through the notoriously competitive landscape of broadcast news.

In the newsroom, breaking stories are at once the most challenging and most exhilarating part of the job. It’s make or break, and Stephanie showed early on that she thrived under the pressure, a skill that’s also critical to the flight deck for handling emergencies in a cool-headed fashion.
Abingdon Co image of the panel of a L-39 Albatross jet where a woman's hand is manipulating the instruments. The woman is wearing a green flight suit and a green watch and is pressing buttons on the instrument panel.
Abingdon Co image of the panel of a L-39 Albatross jet where a woman's hand is manipulating the instruments. The woman is wearing a green flight suit and a green watch and is pressing buttons on the instrument panel.
Abingdon Co image of the panel of a L-39 Albatross jet where a woman's hand is manipulating the instruments. The woman is wearing a green flight suit and a green watch and is pressing buttons on the instrument panel.
Abingdon Co image of the panel of a L-39 Albatross jet where a woman's hand is manipulating the instruments. The woman is wearing a green flight suit and a green watch and is pressing buttons on the instrument panel.

Jet-Setting

Today, Stephanie’s day job is flying the Cessna Citation Latitude (a trans-continental 500+mph corporate jet) for a leading private jet company, while also hitting the airways for travel and excitement. Her favorite plane? If she had to choose, it’s the sleek and savage-looking L-39, a fast and nimble Czech-built jet that satisfies her need for you know what. 
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz sitting in the pilot's seat of her L-39 Albatross. She is a blonde woman wearing a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz sitting in the pilot's seat of her L-39 Albatross. She is a blonde woman wearing a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz sitting in the pilot's seat of her L-39 Albatross. She is a blonde woman wearing a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz sitting in the pilot's seat of her L-39 Albatross. She is a blonde woman wearing a military green flight suit with patches on it.

Many Hats, Many Hearts

Even as her aviation career has taken off, she is active in broadcasting and executive coaching, helping Fortune 500 execs with their communications and leadership skills. “It’s so rewarding to see folks really come into their own and grow in confidence.” 

But as cool as that all sounds, for Stephanie, a deeper purpose has always been a driving force, and today she works, along with her husband, to support organizations offering scholarships for underrepresented groups. “Everyone should have a seat in the cockpit,” she insists, adding, “With resources comes the responsibility to build pathways for those who might not see themselves represented.” 

“What’s next? That's always a fun question because there’s always something new waiting to be explored,” she says. “I want to keep inspiring others and stay connected to communities that need it in aviation. Honestly, it’s the best job in the world!”
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing in front of her L-39 Albatross jet smiling and holding her helmet. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing in front of her L-39 Albatross jet smiling and holding her helmet. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing in front of her L-39 Albatross jet smiling and holding her helmet. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.
Abingdon Co image of Stephanie Goetz standing in front of her L-39 Albatross jet smiling and holding her helmet. She is a blonde woman wearing aviator sunglasses and a military green flight suit with patches on it.
What she says about her Abingdon watch

“Flying jets, I sometimes get my hands dirty by doing some of the maintenance. But other times, I want to go to a gala and get all glammed up! And I also want to coach executives on how to be exceptional leaders. The Abingdon brand is all about communicating to women that you don't have to be put into any particular box, that you can be everything and anything you want to be. That’s embodied by the women who wear these watches. They’re also exceptional pieces. My favorite, the Jackie, is such a beloved piece because I got it for one of my very first flight ratings.  It was a big moment in my life, and it helps mark that achievement.”
What she wears:
Jackie Watch
Flight Computer, Stopwatch, Military Time, Date Function