The Sulu shuttle stunt was a maneuver that could only be pulled off by a small craft in free-fall descent over a planetary body. It involved using braking thrusters to slow the craft as much as possible. At the right moment in the descent, the craft's anti-gravs needed to be overcharged and activated, greatly reducing its velocity at the last moment before impact.
Nine out of ten experienced pilots who attempted this stunt failed to pull it off.
It was not been known which Sulu this maneuver was named after, however Elias Vaughn presumed either Hikaru Sulu or Demora Sulu would have had the skill and resilience to try to execute it the first time.
In June 2376, during a mission to prevent an Inamuri energy pulse from the Prentara planet from wiping out all life on the Vahni Vahltupali system, the shuttlecraft Chaffee lost all power and entered a freefall descent. Ensign Prynn Tenmei managed to successfully pull off the Sulu Shuttle Stunt and save the lives of the crew, Commander Vaughn and Ensign Thirishar ch'Thane. (DS9 - Mission Gamma novel: Twilight)