A Number of Injured as In-Flight Disturbance Impacts Delta Aircraft into Sydney, Australia

A number of individuals sustained injuries following a Delta Airlines aircraft from Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia encountered turbulence Friday morning.

Delta Flight 41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it made its approach and landed at Sydney Airport, a company official stated. A number of the onboard staff were injured.

Emergency medical services reported they assessed a total of five people, and transported a trio to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that such as pain in the back and migraines. The injured were between their thirties and seventies.

It is the latest incident of commercial jets being hit by atmospheric disturbance, with aviation specialists indicating that shifting climate patterns is a significant contributor.

There were nearly 250 travelers and 15 crew members on the aircraft, the official said, clarifying that the plane touched down "without further incident" at the airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on the day in question.

The NSW Ambulance Service indicated they received a call just a mere three minutes prior to the plane arrived, and ambulances were standing by on the runway.

Why plane turbulence is getting more frequent - and potentially more dangerous.

Last year, twenty-five passengers and crew were hurt when a Delta Airlines flight, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, encountered "severe" rough air just two hours into the transoceanic journey, and was forced to make an unscheduled landing.

Earlier this year, passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines jet endured a harrowing short but intense period of extreme instability. One passenger died and dozens were injured, as those without seatbelts lifted out of their seats and fell back down.

In-flight turbulence is not uncommon while flying, and while instances of strong or severe turbulence are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are remained quite uncommon.

Research indicates that there are approximately 5,000 incidents of severe-or-greater turbulence every year, out of a overall number of in excess of 35 million aircraft departures that are conducted globally.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is defined as when the vertical motions of a plane going through disturbed air exert greater than a significant G-force on your body - enough to propel you from your seat if you weren't wearing a restraint.

As global warming modifies atmospheric conditions, specialists caution that flying could become more turbulent: temperature changes and changing jet streams in the upper atmosphere are expected to boost the frequency and intensity of significant turbulence.