A Number of Affected as Turbulence Hits Delta Flight Arriving in Sydney

Multiple passengers and crew were hurt when a Delta Airlines aircraft from LA to Sydney experienced turbulence this past Friday.

The flight, numbered 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it touched down at Sydney Airport, a company official informed. Several cabin crew members sustained injuries.

Local paramedics said they evaluated five individuals, and took a trio to a medical facility with non-life-threatening injuries that included spinal discomfort and migraines. Those affected were between their thirties and seventies.

This marks the newest example of commercial jets being hit by atmospheric disturbance, with aviation specialists saying that global warming is a key driver.

There were 245 people and a crew of 15 on the wide-body jet, the representative added, clarifying that the plane touched down "safely" at the airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on Friday.

Emergency responders said they received a call just a mere three minutes prior to the plane arrived, and ambulances were ready and waiting at the airport.

Why plane turbulence is growing increasingly prevalent - and often stronger.

In the previous year, twenty-five passengers and crew sustained injuries when another Delta jet, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, Netherlands, experienced "considerable" rough air just two hours into the long-haul flight, and diverted for an precautionary landing.

Earlier this year, those on board on a Singapore Airlines flight experienced a harrowing brief five-second bout of severe turbulence. One passenger lost their life and numerous people sustained injuries, as those without seatbelts rose out of their seats and crashed back down.

Bumpy air is a common occurrence while flying, and while instances of rough conditions are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are remained quite uncommon.

Estimates show that there are approximately thousands of instances of significant in-flight disturbance every year, out of a overall number of more than 35 million aircraft departures that now take off around the world.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is categorized as when the vertical motions of a plane going through unstable air exert greater than a significant G-force on your body - enough to lift you out of your seat if you weren't wearing a safety belt.

As global warming shifts atmospheric conditions, specialists caution that flying could become less smooth: shifts in temperature and changing jet streams in the higher altitudes are likely to increase the regularity and severity of dangerous in-flight bumps.