Plain English Meaning

When flying very slowly, the controls don't behave the way they usually do. Pulling back on the yoke makes the airplane go even slower and sink faster, not climb. To keep flying level at that slow speed, you have to add power. So the stick controls how fast you go, and the throttle controls whether you climb or descend.

Full Definition

A flight regime, encountered on the back side of the power curve, in which the normal relationship between pitch, power, airspeed, and altitude is reversed: more back pressure (higher pitch) produces a lower airspeed and a higher rate of descent, and additional power is required just to maintain altitude at that slower speed. In this region, pitch primarily controls airspeed and power primarily controls altitude, the opposite of the relationship that holds at normal .