defensive spiral

noun

A last-resort defensive maneuver in dogfighting used by an aircraft with critically-low kinetic energy, consisting of a rolling scissors performed straight down, using gravity to supply the kinetic energy needed to continue maneuvering, while attempting to either slow down enough to get behind the attacker or else trick the attacker into crashing into the ground.

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Meanings

noundefensive spiral (plural defensive spirals)

plural defensive spirals

  1. aeronauticsA last-resort defensive maneuver in dogfighting used by an aircraft with critically-low kinetic energy, consisting of a rolling scissors performed straight down, using gravity to supply the kinetic energy needed to continue maneuvering, while attempting to either slow down enough to get behind the attacker or else trick the attacker into crashing into the ground.
Cite this entry
APA

defensive spiral. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/defensive%20spiral

MLA

“defensive spiral.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/defensive%20spiral. Accessed November 4, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “defensive spiral,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/defensive%20spiral.

Source: defensive spiral on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.