Several Injured as In-Flight Disturbance Strikes A Delta Airlines Flight into Sydney

A number of individuals sustained injuries following a Delta aircraft traveling from LA to Sydney, Australia encountered turbulence this past Friday.

Delta Flight 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it touched down at Sydney Airport, a representative for the carrier told. A number of the onboard staff were injured.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service reported they assessed five individuals, and transferred three to a medical facility with minor injuries that included back pain and head pain. The injured spanned from their thirties and seventies.

This marks the most recent case of commercial jets encountering atmospheric disturbance, with experts pointing out that shifting climate patterns is a major factor.

The aircraft was carrying 245 passengers and 15 crew members on the wide-body jet, the official noted, adding that the plane landed "without further incident" at the airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on Friday morning.

Paramedics indicated they were alerted just three minutes ahead of the plane arrived, and ambulances were waiting on the tarmac.

Why plane turbulence is becoming more frequent - and often stronger.

In the previous year, 25 people were injured when a separate Delta aircraft, on a route from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, hit "significant" rough air just two hours into the long-haul flight, and was forced to make an unscheduled landing.

Recently, those on board on a Singapore Airlines flight endured a harrowing five seconds of severe turbulence. A traveler passed away and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts lifted out of their seats and crashed back down.

Turbulence is not uncommon while flying, and while instances of rough conditions are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are still very rare.

Data suggests that there are an estimated 5,000 incidents of severe or worse turbulence each year, out of a overall number of more than 35 million flights that now take off around the world.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is described as when the vertical motions of a aircraft experiencing disturbed air generate greater than 1.5g-force on your body - enough to propel you from your seat if you weren't wearing a restraint.

As a changing climate shifts the conditions in the sky, specialists caution that flying could become more turbulent: warming trends and altered air currents in the jet stream level are projected to heighten the occurrence and strength of dangerous in-flight bumps.