Roderick Price was born in Atlanta, GA to parents, James and Jean Price. During his early formidable years, he had the opportunity to live in Dallas, TX and Memphis, TN where he was first influenced by aviation. due to his father's job transfer. In 1978, he and his parents finally moved back to Atlanta. Once back on familiar turf, Rod renewed old friendships. He to played on various sports teams, and joined several instrumental ensembles, both in his church and at his high school alma mater, Benjamin E. Mays High School. It was at Mays High School that one of his classmates shared what he had done over a weekend. He said that he completed his first solo flight. When Rod inquired about how he had the opportunity to fly, his classmate shared that his father was an instructor pilot. Ironically, Rod had always been interested in aviation due to his experiences traveling back and forth between various cities over the years. When his family settled into their new neighborhood, Rod was pleasantly surprised to learn that three of his neighbors were airline pilots for major carriers. This factor along with the interaction with his classmate set the stage for the rest of his professional career. He began taking private flight lessons from his classmate's father, (Julius Alexander) at seventeen years of age which ultimately prepared him for the eventual challenges that launched him to the next level of aviation.
After graduating high school, Rod was accepted to the United States Air Force Academy Preparatory school. Accepting this appointment would have meant an extra year in college and no guarantee of a pilot slot. Instead, he accepted a band scholarship and an eventual Naval R.O.T.C scholarship to attend Morris Brown College. While at Morris Brown, Rod played in the Marching Wolverine Band, was sophomore class Vice- President, Junior Class President, R.O.T.C. Band Commander and in his senior year, Student Government Association President.
In May of 1987, Rod graduated from Morris Brown and received his commission, as an officer in the US Navy. He was also selected and received a navy flight school assignment in Pensacola, FL. After successful completion of flight school, he was assigned to the Naval Air Station, Moffett Field, CA. It should be noted that Rod was the first student from Morris Brown College and the Atlanta University Center that would earn Naval Aviation Wings, as a pilot from the Naval ROTC program.
Rod spent seven years flying the T-34c, T-44 and the P-3 Orion. He was awarded Flight Instructor of the Year in 1993 and opted to transition out of the Navy to more lucrative pastures in the civilian aviation world. He was hired by United Parcel Service (UPS) in 1994 as a flight engineer (B-727), upgraded to first officer (B-757/767) in 1995 and later upgraded to Captain on the Boeing 757/767 in 2001. In 2006 he transitioned to the Boeing MD-11. In 2010, Rod transitioned to the B-747-400 and is currently flying as Captain on that aircraft.
In 2010, Rod accepted the position of Scholarship Committee Chairman of the Organization of Black Aerospace Professionals (OBAP), formerly known as the Organization of Black Airline Pilots. To date, his committee has awarded over five- hundred thousand dollars worth of scholarships to deserving aviation professionals and students.
Rod is married with one child (Jillian) to Lisa C. Price. They reside in Atlanta, GA.