Load Factor and G
The fact that the load factor is commonly expressed in g units does not mean that it is dimensionally the same as the acceleration of gravity, also indicated with g. The load factor is strictly non-dimensional.
The use of g units refers to the fact that an observer on board an aircraft will experience an apparent acceleration of gravity (i.e. relative to his frame of reference) equal to load factor times the acceleration of gravity. For example, an observer on board an aircraft performing a turn with a load factor of 2 (i.e. a 2 g turn) will see objects falling to the floor at twice the normal acceleration of gravity.
In general, whenever the term load factor is used, it is formally correct to express it using numbers only, as in "a maximum load factor of 4". If the term load factor is omitted then g is used instead, as in "pulling a 3 g turn".
Read more about this topic: Load Factor (aeronautics)
Famous quotes containing the words load and/or factor:
“Men so noble,
However faulty, yet should find respect
For what they have been. ‘Tis a cruelty
To load a falling man.”
—William Shakespeare (1564–1616)
“In his very rejection of art Walt Whitman is an artist. He tried to produce a certain effect by certain means and he succeeded.... He stands apart, and the chief value of his work is in its prophecy, not in its performance. He has begun a prelude to larger themes. He is the herald to a new era. As a man he is the precursor of a fresh type. He is a factor in the heroic and spiritual evolution of the human being. If Poetry has passed him by, Philosophy will take note of him.”
—Oscar Wilde (1854–1900)