wing loading / g force / turn rate
I came across this post on another forum, and my initial "private pilot knowledge level" reaction was "hmm I'm not sure I believe this" but I honestly don't know the answer.
The discussion was regarding whether a (relatively) low wing loaded plane could out-turn a higher wing loaded plane, the reasoning being that the lower wing-loaded plane had more "angle of attack left" to achieve the same g-loading as the the higher wing-loaded plane.
Is that true?
I thought that wing-loading irrelevant, and that an XXX degree bank at ZZ speed would produce the same turn rate regardless of the aircraft weight ..... and wouldn't the angle of attack also be the same for both planes ?
Mike
==================
>>"By the way, it really doesn't matter if you are in an Eagle or Falcon, a 9G turn is the same radius of action in either airplane, this means there is no trade-off between aircraft weight and wing surface area, the basic lift equation resultant will be equal for both jets."
"Not quite. A 9G turn is a 9G turn, yes. However, the wing loading makes a huge difference in how a plane is able to maintain these conditions.
For example, we have two 40,000 pound planes. One has a wing loading of 80 lbs./sq. ft., the other has a wing loading of 160 lbs./sq. ft. In a 9-G turn, both planes' centrifugal force will increase ninefold. In order to maintain a 9-G turn, the lift (centripetal force) must also increase ninefold. To do this, the 160 lbs./sq. ft. wing-loaded plane must increase its angle of attack a certain amount, but the 80 lbs./sq. ft. wing-loaded plane doesn't have to increase its angle of attack as much as the first plane has to.
Because the second plane can make a 9-G turn at a lower angle of attack, it can increase it's G-forces (rate of turn), to turn inside the first plane. In other words, at the same angle of attack, the second plane is producing more lift proportional to G-forces than the first plane is.
Wing loading is one indicator of turning ability, but others (such as wing geometry, camber, aspect ratio, etc.) all have influence as well.
Also keep in mind that if lift acts perpendicular to the chord line then a higher angle of attack will creater a higher backwards vector and create a resultant which works against forward motion. "