What is the time enroute and fuel used for a true course of 100 degrees at an airspeed of 90 knots, with a wind of 170/15 and a distance of 142 nautical miles?

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To determine the time enroute and fuel used for a true course of 100 degrees at an airspeed of 90 knots, with a given wind of 170 degrees at 15 knots, and a distance of 142 nautical miles, we start by calculating the ground speed.

First, it is essential to find the effective wind vector that will affect the aircraft's path. The wind is coming from 170 degrees, which means it is blowing towards 350 degrees. The true course of 100 degrees is almost perpendicular to the wind direction, which means the wind will push the aircraft to some extent off course.

Using vector calculations to determine the ground speed involves breaking down the wind's impact. A headwind or tailwind component is determined based on the wind direction. With a true airspeed of 90 knots and a wind of 15 knots from 170 degrees, we can calculate the wind's component affecting the airspeed.

When calculating the wind's crosswind and headwind components:

  1. Define the angle between the wind direction (350 degrees) and the course (100 degrees). The angle difference is about 250 degrees.

  2. Use trigonometric functions (such as sine and cosine) to find the components of the wind.

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