An airplane travels 800 miles against the wind in 5 hours, and makes the return trip with the same wind in 2 hours. Find the rate of the wind.
A) $280 \mathrm{mph}$
B) $160 \mathrm{mph}$
C) $120 \mathrm{mph}$
D) $400 \mathrm{mph}$

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

The airplane's speed against the wind is $ \frac{800}{5} = 160 $ mph, and with the wind is $ \frac{800}{2} = 400 $ mph. Let $ p $ be the plane's speed in still air and $ w $ be the wind speed. Then, $ p - w = 160 $ and $ p + w = 400 $. Solving these equations, we find $ w = 120 $ mph.

An Airplane Travels 800 Miles Against the Wind in 5 280mph280 \mathrm{mph}280mph

An Airplane Travels 800 Miles Against the Wind in 5 $280 \mathrm{mph}$