The number of degrees per second of heading change that an aircraft makes is known as which term?

• A. Rate of Turn
• B. Load Factor Importance
• C. Factor of Safety
• D. Ultimate Load

Answer: (D)

The heading change per second is called the rate of turn. It measures how fast the aircraft’s heading rotates around the vertical axis, expressed in degrees per second. A standard rate turn, for example, is about 3 degrees per second, and relates to how quickly you’re turning at a given bank and airspeed.

The other terms describe different ideas: load factor is lift relative to weight, factor of safety is the margin before structural failure, and ultimate load is the maximum load the structure is designed to withstand—none of these describe how quickly the aircraft’s heading changes.