1973 AMC 12 Problem 34
Attempt Problem 34 of the 1973 AMC 12 below, then check your answer against the professionally curated solution from LIVE by Po-Shen Loh. You can also try the full timed exam, view all 1973 AMC 12 solutions, or check the answer key.
All problems are used with official legal permission of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA).
34.
A plane flew straight against a wind between two towns in minutes and returned with that wind in minutes less than it would take in still air. The number of minutes (two answers) for the return trip was
or
or
or
or
or
Answer: C
Small Hint:
Let be the return time; the still-air time is then
Big Hint:
The plane’s still-air speed is the average of its against-wind and with-wind ground speeds
Solution:
Let the distance be and the return time be minutes. The against-wind and with-wind speeds are and Their average is the still-air speed Therefore Clearing denominators gives Both positive values are consistent with the stated conditions, so the two return times are and minutes.
Therefore, the correct answer is C.
Problem 34 in Other Years
1950 AMC 12 · 1951 AMC 12 · 1952 AMC 12 · 1953 AMC 12 · 1954 AMC 12 · 1955 AMC 12 · 1956 AMC 12 · 1957 AMC 12 · 1958 AMC 12 · 1959 AMC 12 · 1960 AMC 12 · 1961 AMC 12 · 1962 AMC 12 · 1963 AMC 12 · 1964 AMC 12 · 1965 AMC 12 · 1966 AMC 12 · 1967 AMC 12 · 1968 AMC 12 · 1969 AMC 12 · 1970 AMC 12 · 1971 AMC 12 · 1972 AMC 12