SOLUTION: How do you find the speed of the plane is still weather? As in "A jet plane flies 5 hours west with a 60 MPH headwind. The plane returns east with a tailwind and the round trip

Question 727834: How do you find the speed of the plane is still weather?
As in "A jet plane flies 5 hours west with a 60 MPH headwind. The plane returns east with a tailwind and the round trip took 9 hours of flying"
Answer by fcabanski(1391) (Show Source): You can put this solution on YOUR website!
Distance = rate x time. The plane travels the same distance both ways. So the original distance = the return distance.

For the original distance, the plane flew at its speed (x) minus 60 MPH (the plane is traveling against the headwind, so the headwind subtracts from the plane's speed). D = (x-60) * 5

For the return trip the tailwind adds to the speed. The round trip was 9 hours, and the original trip took 5 hours, so the return trip took 9-5 = 4 hours. D = (x+60) * 4

Those distances are equal. (x-60)*5 = (x+60)*4

5x - 300 = 4x + 240

x = 540 MPH

Hope the solution helped. Sometimes you need more than a solution. Contact fcabanski@hotmail.com for online, private tutoring, or personalized problem solving (quick for groups of problems.)

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