Definition
The total load factor produced when an airplane is simultaneously supporting its own weight and generating the additional lift required to perform a maneuver, such as a level turn or pull-up. It is the combined effect of the gravitational load (1 G) and the centripetal load created by the maneuver, expressed as a multiple of the airplane's weight.
Plain English
The total stress the wings are carrying during a maneuver, measured as how many times the airplane's normal weight they are holding up at that moment.
Context Anchor
Seen when learning how the airplane feels in turns, especially why a steeper bank makes the airplane feel heavier and requires more wing support.
Derivation
Resultant' comes from the Latin resultare, meaning 'to spring back' or 'to follow as an outcome.' In physics, a resultant is what you get when you combine two or more forces into one. So 'resultant load factor' is simply the single load value that results from combining the load of supporting the airplane's weight with the extra load of maneuvering.
Why Pilots Care
It determines both the structural loads the airframe must withstand and the rise in stall speed during maneuvers.
Grounding Statement
In a turn, the wings must hold the airplane up and also pull it around the turn, so the combined load on the airplane increases.
Intuition Check
Resultant does not mean “important” or “final” in a vague sense here. It means the combined effect of forces acting together on the airplane.
Example Sentence 1
In a level 60-degree banked turn, the resultant load factor is 2 G, meaning the wings must produce twice the lift needed in straight-and-level flight.
Example Sentence 2
The pilot monitors airspeed carefully because the higher resultant load factor in a steep turn reduces the margin above stall.