SOLUTION: Please help me set this up and solve. Thank you so much. Matt and Anna Killian are frequent fliers on​ Fast-n-Go Airlines. They often fly between two cities that are a dis

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Question 1125422: Please help me set this up and solve. Thank you so much.
Matt and Anna Killian are frequent fliers on​ Fast-n-Go Airlines. They often fly between two cities that are a distance of 1575 miles apart. On one particular​ trip, they flew into the wind and the trip took 4.5 hours. The return trip with the wind behind​ them, only took about 3.5 hours. Find the speed of the wind and the speed of the plane in still air.
The wind speed is _____mph.
The plane speed is_____mph.

Answer by ikleyn(52788) About Me  (Show Source):
You can put this solution on YOUR website!
.
The airplane effective speed, when flying into a head wind, is  1575%2F4.5 = 350 mph. 
This speed is the difference  u-v  of the airplane speed in still air and the wind speed:  u - v = 350 mph.


The airplane effective speed, when flying with the wind, is  1575%2F3.5 = 450 mph.
This speed is the sum u+v of the airplane speed in still air and the wind speed: u + v = 450 mph.


To determine the airplane speed in still air  "u"  and the wind speed  "v", you need to solve this system of two equations:

u - v = 350,   (1)
u + v = 450.   (2)


Add the equations (1) and (2). You will get

2u = 350 + 450
2u = 800,

u = 800%2F2 = 400 miles per hour.  It is the airplane speed in still air.

Then from (1) you find  v = u - 400 = 450 - 400 = 50 miles per hour.  It is the wind speed.

Solved.

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It is a typical "tailwind and headwind" word problem.

See the lessons
    - Wind and Current problems
    - Wind and Current problems solvable by quadratic equations
    - Selected problems from the archive on a plane flying with and against the wind
in this site, where you will find other similar solved problems with detailed explanations.


Also,  you have this free of charge online textbook in ALGEBRA-I in this site
    ALGEBRA-I - YOUR ONLINE TEXTBOOK.

The referred lessons are the part of this textbook under the section "Word problems",  the topic "Travel and Distance problems".


Save the link to this online textbook together with its description

Free of charge online textbook in ALGEBRA-I
https://www.algebra.com/algebra/homework/quadratic/lessons/ALGEBRA-I-YOUR-ONLINE-TEXTBOOK.lesson

to your archive and use it when it is needed.