biplane arrived at Greenbury Point on the grounds of the United States Naval Academy on September 6, 1911. Rodgers completed the acceptance flight for it the next day then embarked on a flight from the Naval Academy to Washington, D.C. This was the first time it had ever been attempted. After circling the academy grounds for several turns, he set out on the 45-mile trip to D.C., following the tracks of the Washington, Baltimore, and Annapolis electric line, flanked by his friends following in automobiles. After flying around a thunderstorm near Odenton, Maryland, he overflew the Army aviation camp at College Park, Maryland. He then overflew the Bennings neighborhood in D.C. and commenced down the eastern branch of the Potomac. After passing over the United States Army War College, he turned toward the city at an altitude of 2000 feet. He reached the city at about 4:45 pm then circled the Washington Monument for 15 minutes where he executed several maneuvers before landing near the White House at 5:04 pm in front of a small crowd. At the time, it was one of the longest, most successful flights in Naval Aviation. After exchanging greetings with CAPT Chambers, he flew back to Annapolis. On September 16, Rodgers became the first man in America to visit his parents by airplane. He departed College Park, Maryland, at 1:15 in the afternoon; passing over the northwestern section of Baltimore, he landed at the Pimlico racetrack, where he refueled. Afterwards, he circled Pimlico for half an hour at various altitudes and was then off to Havre de Grace, arriving at the Rodgers home at Sion Hill at 5:35. His father, Rear Admiral John Rodgers, his mother, and brother Robert greeted him upon landing in a field 200 yards from their house. Following the tracks of the Pennsylvania Railroad from Baltimore into the city, he landed with less than a quart of fuel. Crowds gathered in along his route of flight to cheer him on. His intention was to leave the next day for New York, where his cousin Calbraith Perry Rodgers was to depart Sheepshead Bay for San Francisco that afternoon to compete for the $50,000 Hearst Prize. In late November 1911, Rodgers was at the Navy aviation camp at Annapolis developing a life preserver for use in hydroplane flights. The life preserver was described as being "very similar to a baseball catcher's breast protector"