The origin of phrases.

[av8rdave]

3. Aviation has a couple of terms incorrectly labeled as sexist

Cockpit: This has its origins in early sea warfare. One of the early defensive measures designed into combat ships was an armor lined well (or pit) for the coxswain to drop into when the ammo started flying. Loss of the coxswain meant loss of the ship’s maneuverability.

“Balls to the wall:” In the reciprocating engine days, each engine had three controls - the propeller pitch, the fuel/air mixture and the throttles, whose levers typically had ball shaped knobs on the tops of them. Maximum power was achieved by pushing the throttles as far towards the firewall (right behind the instrument panel) as possible.