John Rodgers (January 15, 1881 – August 27, 1926) was an officer in the United States Navy and a pioneering aviator. Biography Rodgers was the great-grandson of Commodores Rodgers and Perry. He was born in Washington, D.C. and graduated from the Naval Academy in 1903. His early naval career included service on ships of various types before studying flying in 1911 and becoming the second American naval officer to fly for the United States Navy, designated as U.S. Naval aviator No. 2. Early aviation career On February 1, 1911, Rodgers, now a lieutenant, participated in an experiment under the direction of Captain Washington Irving Chambers, the first Navy officer assigned to development of the nascent U.S. Naval aviation program, that involved a man-lifting kite. A train of 11 man-raising kites lifted Rodgers to a record 400 feet off the deck of USS Pennsylvania (ACR-4). This was the same ship on which Eugene Ely performed the first shipboard landing of an airplane days earlier. As the ship steamed along at a 12 kt clip, Rodgers worked against an 8-kt breeze while suspended from a kite cable 100 yards astern. He made observations and took photographs for 15 minutes, signaling his observations back to the ship. Reportedly, he had a clear view for over 40 miles. On March 17, 1911, Rodgers reported to the Wright Company in Dayton, Ohio, to receive flight training. This was in response to the Wright Brothers offering to train one pilot for the Navy. He was only the second Navy officer to receive such instruction, and the first to receive it from the Wrights. On July 1, 1911, Rodgers was on a leave of absence from the Navy while the aviation facilities at Greenbury Point on the grounds of the United States Naval Academy were being prepared. He filled this time performing aerial demonstrations in Ohio with his cousin, Calbraith Perry Rodgers. On their way back to Dayton from Springfield, having just finalized a contract to perform at the Fourth of July celebration there, they reportedly borrowed the Wright flyer kept at the Wright brothers field at Simms, Ohio, without permission. The two made a few successful flights and things were going well, until they damaged a wing on one of the landings. Once informed, the Wright brothers insisted upon the use of the Rodgers plane until theirs was repaired, costing them some business engagements. The Wright