To find the airplane's current height after taking off, climbing, and then descending, we can follow these steps:
- The airplane climbs to a height of 23,500 feet.
- After climbing, the airplane descends 550 feet.
Now we can calculate the airplane's current height after the descent:
\[ \text{Current Height} = \text{Initial Height} - \text{Descent} \] \[ \text{Current Height} = 23,500 \text{ feet} - 550 \text{ feet} \] \[ \text{Current Height} = 22,950 \text{ feet} \]
The airplane's current height is 22,950 feet.