load factor

noun

the amount or weight of cargo, number of passengers, etc., that an aircraft, vehicle, or vessel can carry.
the percentage of available seats, space, or maximum carrying weight paid for and used by passengers, shippers, etc.:
An airline can't profit on a 40 percent load factor.
Electricity. the ratio of the average load over a designated period of time to the peak load occurring in that period.

load factor

the ratio of the average electric load to the peak load over a period of time
aeronautics
1. the ratio of a given external load to the weight of an aircraft
2. the actual payload carried by an aircraft as a percentage of its maximum payload

First recorded in 1890–95

With the load factor on U.S. airlines at a record, passengers are facing higher prices for fewer seats for summer travel.

The load factor has climbed steadily over the past decade—to 83 percent in 2011.

Ten years ago, the load factor—the percentage of seats actually occupied—was generally in the mid-70 percentages.

Through the first 10 months of 2012, the load factor for domestic flights was 83.6 percent.

In October 2012, the domestic load factor was at a record 84.1 percent.

The average load-factor of all the British electricity stations in 1907 was 14.5%—a figure which tends to improve.

In practice, the load factor for electric crane motors varies from 1⁄3 to 1⁄6.

The actual load factor to be chosen depends on the nature of the work and the kind of crane.

Many schemes are employed for improving the load factor, or, in other words, to encourage a long use of central station product.

This question of load factor is by all means the most important one in central station economy.

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