A Number of Hurt as Rough Air Impacts A Delta Airlines Plane Arriving in Sydney

Multiple passengers and crew were hurt following a Delta Airlines flight from LA to Sydney experienced significant turbulence this past Friday.

The flight, numbered 41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it landed at Sydney Airport, a representative for the carrier stated. A number of the onboard staff sustained injuries.

Local paramedics stated they evaluated five individuals, and took three to a medical facility with minor injuries that comprised pain in the back and headaches. The injured spanned from their 30s up to the 70s.

It is the most recent case of aircraft encountering severe turbulence, with experts pointing out that shifting climate patterns is a key driver.

On board were nearly 250 travelers and 15 crew members on the aircraft, the official added, clarifying that the plane landed "safely" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday.

Paramedics indicated they received a call just a mere three minutes before the plane arrived, and emergency vehicles were standing by on the runway.

The reasons turbulence is becoming more frequent - and often stronger.

During the past year, twenty-five passengers and crew sustained injuries when a Delta Airlines flight, flying from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, Netherlands, hit "significant" atmospheric disturbance just 120 minutes into the long-haul flight, and diverted for an precautionary landing.

Recently, passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines flight endured a harrowing five seconds of severe turbulence. An individual passed away and dozens were injured, as unbelted passengers were thrown from their seats and crashed back down.

Turbulence is not uncommon while flying, and while occurrences of rough conditions seem to be rising, they are still very rare.

Data suggests that there are an estimated thousands of instances of significant in-flight disturbance each year, out of a sum of in excess of 35 million journeys that currently occur around the world.

Severe turbulence is defined as when the up and down movements of a jet experiencing unstable air exert more than 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - sufficient force to throw you from your seat if you weren't wearing a seatbelt.

As a changing climate modifies atmospheric conditions, specialists caution that commercial aviation could become bumpier: temperature changes and altered air currents in the jet stream level are projected to boost the frequency and intensity of significant turbulence.