flat spin

1. aviation The motion of an aircraft that has spun out of control. It's very difficult for even experienced pilots to recover from a flat spin. What did your flight instructor tell you to do if your plane enters a flat spin? A: "What a tragic accident. Do you know what happened?" B: "I heard the plane entered into a flat spin shortly before it crashed."

2. By extension, a state of increasing panic, agitation, or desperation, especially as may lead to failure, decline, or stagnation. With the former champions currently in a bewildering flat spin, the door is wide open for some ambitious underdog to climb the ranks and seize the title. The country's economy went into a flat spin when its real estate market crashed a couple years ago. If the job market enters into a flat spin, what will that mean for the economy?