During an approach to a stall, an increased load factor will cause the airplane to

• A. Stall at a higher airspeed
• B. Stall at a lower airspeed
• C. Stall at the same airspeed
• D. Immediate stall

Answer: (A)

When you increase the load factor, the wing has to produce more lift to support the aircraft’s weight times that load factor. Lift is limited by Cl_max at the stall. Since you can’t exceed Cl_max, you must fly faster to generate the extra lift required as the load factor grows. Mathematically, stall speed rises with the square root of the load factor (V_stall ∝ sqrt(n)). So in a situation where you’re approaching a stall and the load factor increases (for example, by banking or pulling up), the speed at which stall occurs becomes higher. This is why the airplane would stall at a higher airspeed, not at the same or a lower speed, and not immediately.