Wing Loading

Wing loading tells you how much aircraft weight is being supported by each unit of wing area. It is useful because lift depends strongly on wing area: for a given speed and air density, a larger wing can generate the needed lift with less load per square metre, while a smaller wing must work harder. In practice, higher wing loading usually means the aircraft must fly faster to stay aloft and will tend to have a higher stall speed.

Use this formula when comparing aircraft performance, especially takeoff and landing behavior, stall characteristics, and general handling. It is also useful in aircraft design and loading calculations to see how changes in mass or wing size affect flight.

• Using mass in kilograms without converting to weight in newtons
• Mixing up wing area with wingspan instead of using total wing planform area
• Forgetting that wing loading is weight divided by area, not area divided by weight