Skip Rogers was born on June 1, 1967, in Akron, Ohio. He entered the U.S. Air Force Academy in June 1986, and was commissioned a 2d Lt in the U.S. Air Force on May 30, 1990. While at the Academy, Skip was a member of the Rugby team who won the Collegiate National Championship in 1989 and 1990. Lt Rogers next completed Undergraduate Pilot Training at Vance AFB, Oklahoma, in October 19991, followed by service as an E-3 Sentry AWACS pilot and Aircraft Commander with the 962nd Airborne Air Control Squadron at Elmendorf AFB, Alaska, from October 1991 until he was killed in the crash of an E-3B Sentry (Call Sign "Yukla 27") shortly after takeoff from Elmendorf AFB on September 22, 1995. Capt Rogers was buried at the U.S. Air Force Academy Cemetery in Colorado Springs, Colorado.

His Meritorious Service Medal Citation reads:

Members of Flight Yukla 27 distinguished themselves in the performance of outstanding service to the United States and Canada while serving as E-3 Airborne Warning and Air Control Systems air crew members assigned to 3rd Wing, 962nd Airborne Air Control Squadron and the 381st Air Intelligence Squadron, Elmendorf Air Force Base, Alaska. They consistantly demonstrated outstanding airmanship while providing long range airborne surveillance, detection, identification, and command and control during deployed operations and in the Alaska region. All were dedicated volunteers selflessly serving, and fully committed to the defense of their nations and the Alaska region. Our memory of these airmen will forever be of professionals who stepped to the front and answered the call to duty and made the ultimate sacrifice in the cause of peace and freedom. The distinctive accomplishments of each of these individuals reflect credit upon themselves, the United States Air Force, and Canadian Forces.