Increasing load factor causes stall speed to:

Increasing load factor causes stall speed to:

• A. decrease
• B. increase
• C. stay the same
• D. vary

Answer: (B)

When you increase the load factor, the wing must generate more lift to support the airplane’s weight in the given flight condition. Lift is limited by Clmax, so to produce the extra lift required at the same airspeed you’d have to raise the angle of attack further until you hit stall. Since you can’t exceed Clmax, the airspeed needed to produce that lift — the stall speed — increases as the load factor grows. In other words, stall speed rises with load factor (for a given airplane, Vs ≈ Vs0 × sqrt(n)). For example, doubling the load factor raises stall speed by about 41%. That’s why you must fly faster in a turn to avoid stalling.

When you increase the load factor, the wing must generate more lift to support the airplane’s weight in the given flight condition. Lift is limited by Clmax, so to produce the extra lift required at the same airspeed you’d have to raise the angle of attack further until you hit stall. Since you can’t exceed Clmax, the airspeed needed to produce that lift — the stall speed — increases as the load factor grows. In other words, stall speed rises with load factor (for a given airplane, Vs ≈ Vs0 × sqrt(n)). For example, doubling the load factor raises stall speed by about 41%. That’s why you must fly faster in a turn to avoid stalling.