balls to the walls

Term used to describe an intense, or extreme situation.

Origin: In aviation, the throttles (or power levers) are usually sticks with ball shaped ends. When a pilot wants full power, he moves the throttle forward towards the front wall of the cockpit. Thus, "balls to the walls" meant "full power".

When Dr. Smith's patient suffered a cardiac arrest, the code team went balls to the walls.

by davechandler March 07, 2005