Delta Connection Academy

Doughnut on the Ramp

Doughnut on the ramp

So we completed our run-up and were cleared to taxi to runway 17. I turned the plane to the right and attempted to straighten out to enter the ramp. The plane just kept turning right. Michael suggested I tried the rudder & brakes (which I knew & was trying) but it still just turned right. We thought the right brake was stuck so we called maintenance & turned the plane off. When we exited, we found the tire had gone flat sometime during our engine check. I would be remiss if I did not give a shout-out to our maintenance crew. They came to our rescue in a hurry and changed the tire in a timely manner. We were fortunate the tire went flat on the ramp and not on take-off or landing. We had some difficulty starting the plane and began to wonder if we were not meant to fly. It finally did start. Our time in the plane was greatly shortened by this fiasco but I only needed to perform one approach and did so successfully.