STEF GOZA

Alaska State Liaison

New Alaska Liaison Stef Goza started flying as a teenager in Iowa’s flatlands, where she was born and raised. She earned her pilot certificate in her 20s and flew for the next few years, but like a lot of us, flying was set on the back burner. “I returned to aviation with grit and determination to knock out old goals. I’m a strong advocate for rusty and lapsed pilots,” she says.


She earned high performance, complex, and tailwheel endorsements, and is instrument rated. She received her Single Engine Seaplane rating in a de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver. Her older brother, “who was a regular at Montana’s 8U2, Schafer Meadows,” interested her in backcountry flying years ago. Prior to moving to Alaska, Stef lived out West, where she spent time learning backcountry and mountain flying basics throughout Wyoming and Montana. A self-proclaimed mountain junkie, Stef enjoys backcountry camping, hiking, backpacking and cross-country skiing.


“The RAF mission allows me to combine my love of aviation with my passion for backcountry outdoor recreation,” she says. “I’m excited to help support the RAF mission and projects in Alaska with my fellow state liaisons, ambassadors, and volunteers.”


Stef and her husband own two experimental Cub-type airplanes and a Cessna Cardinal. They live on a runway near Palmer, Alaska. She is also the Chair of the Mat-Su Valley 99s Chapter. When she’s not doing something aviation-related, Stef manages a team of oncology nurses for a pharmaceutical company.


She earned her pilot certificate in her 20s and flew for the next few years, but like a lot of us, flying was set on the back burner. “I returned to aviation with grit and determination to knock out old goals. I’m a strong advocate for rusty and lapsed pilots,” she says. She earned high performance, complex, and tailwheel endorsements, and is instrument rated. She received her Single Engine Seaplane rating in a de Havilland DHC-2 Beaver. Her older brother, “who was a regular at Montana’s 8U2, Schafer Meadows,” interested her in backcountry flying years ago. Prior to moving to Alaska, Stef lived out West, where she spent time learning backcountry and mountain flying basics throughout Wyoming and Montana. A self-proclaimed mountain junkie, Stef enjoys backcountry camping, hiking, backpacking and cross-country skiing.


“The RAF mission allows me to combine my love of aviation with my passion for backcountry outdoor recreation,” she says. “I’m excited to help support the RAF mission and projects in Alaska with my fellow state liaisons, ambassadors, and volunteers.”


Stef and her husband own two experimental Cub-type airplanes and a Cessna Cardinal. They live on a runway near Palmer, Alaska. She is also the Chair of the Mat-Su Valley 99s Chapter. When she’s not doing something aviation-related, Stef manages a team of oncology nurses for a pharmaceutical company.

Stef joins RAF Liaisons Al Clayton and Jeff DeFreest in Alaska.
(907) 982-7833
sgoza@theraf.org


    Recent Posts

August 28, 2026
RAF Michigan Liaisons Tanmoy Ganguly and Scott Anttila met with district U.S. Forest Service staff prior to starting work at Lost Creek airstrip, now MI45, (formerly 5Y4) in the Huron-Manistee National Forest in north-central Michigan. “We had a very constructive discussion about what the RAF does, and what we envision for future amenities at Lost Creek airstrip,” Ganguly said. The mid-August work weekend attracted 16 aircraft and 20 volunteers, including new MI Ambassador Ryan Minnick, MI Ambassador Ehsan Hamtaei, and IN Liaison Bill Steinmetz, many of whom enjoyed camping overnight in the forested setting. The crew was joined by nearby residents who donated their time, tools, and machinery to help and provided snacks.
August 27, 2026
Submitted August 27, 2025
August 25, 2026
CALL TO ACTION: Public Comments Requested to Support Access to 10 of Utah's Sensational Backcountry Airstrips The BLM has issued an Environmental Assessment (EA) regarding the following ten Moab-Monticello backcountry airstrips. Pilot comments will help to open access to the airstrips. Your Comments are Needed by Thursday, September 3. Please use the link below to state in your own words why you support access to these backcountry airstrips: Nokai Dome Piute Canyon Potato Ridge Playa Big Flat Red Canyon Spring Canyon Castle Creek Steer Ridge West Wee Hope Mine
August 25, 2026
Our many RAF supporters have such vast and varied experience, and we’re capturing some of their words of wisdom to share with you. This guest editorial is by Bill McGlynn, President of the RAF.
August 25, 2026
Nestled in among awe-inspiring mountains, Glacier Creek (KGZ) airstrip is 15 nm east of McCarthy in Alaska’s Wrangell-St. Elias National Park. On July 11, a work party drawing 25 volunteers was held there, led by RAF Alaska Liaison Stef Goza, her husband Randy, and Alaska Ambassador Bri Norby. They were joined by a group of National Park Service maintenance crew members who’d been flown in the night before and cleared the trail from the airstrip to the cabin before volunteers arrived.