Multiple Affected as Rough Air Hits Delta Plane into Sydney

A number of individuals have been injured after a Delta flight traveling from Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia was hit by significant turbulence this past Friday.

The flight, numbered 41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at the Sydney airport, a company official stated. A number of the onboard staff were injured.

Emergency medical services said they treated five individuals, and took three to a medical facility with non-life-threatening injuries that comprised spinal discomfort and head pain. Those affected ranged from their thirties and seventies.

It is the newest example of planes experiencing atmospheric disturbance, with researchers pointing out that shifting climate patterns is a significant contributor.

The aircraft was carrying nearly 250 travelers and fifteen staff members on the aircraft, the Delta spokesperson added, adding that the plane arrived "safely" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday.

Paramedics said they got a call just three minutes before the plane touched down, and response teams were waiting on the tarmac.

Why plane turbulence is getting increasingly prevalent - and more severe.

During the past year, twenty-five passengers and crew sustained injuries when a separate Delta aircraft, flying from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, Netherlands, encountered "significant" turbulence just two hours into the long-haul flight, and diverted for an unscheduled landing.

Earlier this year, those on board on a Singapore Airlines jet endured a terrifying brief five-second of severe turbulence. A traveler died and dozens were injured, as individuals not fastened in lifted out of their seats and fell back down.

Bumpy air is fairly routine during flights, and while cases of strong or severe turbulence are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are remained quite uncommon.

Estimates show that there are around 5,000 incidents of severe or worse turbulence each year, out of a total of in excess of 35 million flights that are conducted around the world.

Severe turbulence is described as when the up and down movements of a aircraft going through disturbed air generate in excess of 1.5g-force on your body - enough to propel you from your seat if you weren't wearing a seatbelt.

As climate change modifies the conditions in the sky, specialists caution that commercial aviation could become bumpier: warming trends and shifting wind patterns in the higher altitudes are likely to heighten the regularity and severity of dangerous in-flight bumps.