Final answer:
The elevation change for an airplane with a climb gradient of 1/5 after traveling a horizontal distance of 500 meters is 100 meters.
Step-by-step explanation:
The question relates to the calculation of a plane's change in altitude, given a certain climb gradient and a known horizontal distance traveled. When an airplane climbs with a gradient of 1/5, it means that for every 5 meters traveled horizontally, the plane ascends 1 meter vertically. To find the elevation change after the airplane has traveled a horizontal distance of 500 meters, we can simply multiply the horizontal distance by the gradient fraction:
Elevation Change = Horizontal Distance × Gradient
Elevation Change = 500 meters × (1/5)
Elevation Change = 100 meters
Thus, after traveling 500 meters horizontally, the airplane's elevation would have increased by 100 meters.