Question

Charlie is at a small airfield watching for the approach of a small plane with engine trouble. He sees the plane at an angle of elevation of 32 . At the same time, the pilot radios Charlie and reports the planeÍs altitude is 1,700 feet. CharlieÍs eyes are 5.2 feet from the ground. Draw a sketch of this situation (you do not need to submit the sketch).

Find the ground distance from Charlie to the plane. Explain your work.

Answer 1

You can draw a right triangle whose opposite side is 1700 feet, the adjacent side is the ground distance from Charlie to the plane (x), and the angle between theses sides is 32°.

Then, tan (32°) = 1700 feet / x => x = 1700 feet / tan(32°) = 1700 feet / 0.625 = 2720 feet.