A maximum loading prediction system for determining the design speed stall margin capability of axial flow compressors is presented The formulation of the primary correlations for this system is based on the analogy between a compressor cascade and a diffuser passage Semiempirical corrections are applied to relate the initial cascade derived maximum loading values to the real compressor environment The system was formulated on the basis of meanline parameters, such that it can be used to guide the selection of the primary compressor design variables early in the design phase Good agreement is demonstrated between the predicted and test stall margins for a wide range of single and multistage compressor geometries