Which statement about attitude stability is true?

• A. Bank angle does not affect turn rate.
• B. An unstable attitude improves response time.
• C. Attitude stability reduces trimming needs and improves predictability of the maneuver outcome.
• D. Attitude stability makes each maneuver unpredictable.

Answer: (C)

Attitude stability describes how the aircraft tends to maintain or return to a reference attitude after a disturbance. When the airplane is attitude-stable, disturbances are damped and the aircraft settles back toward the trimmed attitude with less pilot input, reducing trimming needs. It also makes the response to control inputs more predictable because the airplane behaves consistently to changes in bank or pitch, yielding repeatable maneuver outcomes. That’s why this statement is true: it captures both the reduced trimming effort and the increased predictability of how the airplane will respond during maneuvers.

Bank angle does affect turn rate—more bank generally increases turn rate—so the claim that it doesn’t is incorrect. An unstable attitude does not improve response time; it tends to produce more erratic, less predictable handling. Attitude stability, in fact, makes maneuvers more predictable rather than unpredictable.