What is the descent time for an airplane from a cruising altitude of 6,500 ft to an airport at 700 ft?

To determine the descent time from a cruising altitude of 6,500 feet to an airport at 700 feet, it’s important to understand a few key concepts regarding descent rates. The standard descent rate for general aviation aircraft can typically range from 500 to 1,000 feet per minute, depending on how the pilot chooses to descend—whether they opt for a more gradual descent or a steeper one.

In this scenario, the total altitude change is 6,500 feet - 700 feet = 5,800 feet. If we consider an average descent rate for an efficient approach, let’s use a descent rate of about 1,000 feet per minute, which is a common rate for many aircraft during an initial descent.

To calculate the time, divide the total feet to descend by the descent rate:

5,800 feet ÷ 1,000 feet/minute = 5.8 minutes

This is the descent time at a 1,000 feet per minute descent rate. Now, when considering the variability of descent rates and including some buffer for adjustments and potential held configurations, it typically rounds out to about 10 minutes.

Therefore, the choice identifying 10 minutes accurately reflects a reasonable estimate of descent time considering various operational