A helicopter, initially hovering 35 3535 feet above the ground, begins to ascend at a speed of 16 1616 feet per second. Write an equation that can be used to find � tt, the number of seconds it takes for the helicopter to reach 179 179179 feet above the ground. The total height, which everything else must add up to, is feet. The starting height of the helicopter is feet. The amount of time it takes is seconds. We can write the equation as 179 = 35 + 16 � 179=35+16t179, equals, 35, plus, 16, t.