Magnetohydrodynamic （MHD） n=1 kink mode with n the toroidal mode number is studied and the operational beta limit, constrained by the mode, is calculated for the equilibrium of HL-2A by using the GATO code. Approximately the same beta limit is obtained for configurations with a value of the axial safety factor q0 both larger and less than 1. Without the stabilization of the conducting wall, the beta limit is found to be 0.821% corresponding to a normalized beta value of βN^c=2.56 for a typical HL-2A discharge with a plasma current Ip=0.245 MA, and the scaling of βN^c -constant is confirmed.
