You will hear people talking about High Alpha.... it is simply a fancy name for flight at high angles of attack. It means that the wing is not producing enough lift to fly. In HA flight, the engines thrust, combined with the elevator or rudders deflection provides the plane with control and altitude. It is very much like a boat in water.... air is not flowing over the wing, but rather against the bottom of it. just like sticking your hand out the window of a car and rotating your palm back and forth. The same is applied to the fuselage side.... it too can keep you "suspended" in air when combined with enough thrust and rudder deflection. To be good at 3D a plane must be able to make a clean transition to HA flight from conventional flight.... with out snapping. The key to this is large control surfaces.