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An airplane stalls at 50 knots in level flight. About what is its stall speed in a level 60 degree bank?

About 70 knots, since stall speed rises with the square root of load factor.

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  1. 50 knots, stall speed never changes
  2. About 70 knots ✔
  3. About 100 knots

Why: A level 60 degree bank doubles the load factor. Stall speed grows with the square root of load factor, so 50 knots becomes about 70 knots. A stall above 1G is an accelerated stall.

Huh, didn't know that: The same airplane would stall at about 60 knots in a level 45 degree bank.

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I asked my airplane why it stalls faster in a turn. It said it was under a lot of pressure.
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References

Answer: About 70 knots. A level 60 degree bank doubles the load factor. Stall speed grows with the square root of load factor, so 50 knots becomes about 70 knots. A stall above 1G is an accelerated stall.

  1. Airplane Flying Handbook FAA-H-8083-3C, Chapter 10 Performance Maneuvers www.faa.gov/sites/faa.gov/files/regulations_policies/handbooks_manuals/aviation/airplane_handbook/11_afh_ch10.pdf
    It will stall at 70 knots if the bank is increased to 60°. Stalling speed increases at the square root of the load factor.
    Checked 2026-10-09.

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