A Number of Affected as Turbulence Strikes Delta Aircraft Landing at Sydney

Several people sustained injuries after a Delta Airlines aircraft from LA to Sydney was hit by significant turbulence Friday morning.

Delta Flight 41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it landed at the Sydney airport, a company official told. Several cabin crew members required medical attention.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service said they evaluated five individuals, and transported three of them to the hospital with relatively minor issues that included spinal discomfort and head pain. The injured spanned from their 30s to 70s.

It is the newest example of aircraft being hit by severe turbulence, with aviation specialists indicating that climate change is a key driver.

There were 245 passengers and 15 crew members on the wide-body jet, the Delta spokesperson said, stating that the plane arrived "safely and normally" at Sydney Airport at 06:48 local time on Friday.

Emergency responders said they were alerted just three minutes prior to the plane touched down, and ambulances were ready and waiting at the airport.

Why plane turbulence is growing more common - and often stronger.

Last year, twenty-five passengers and crew sustained injuries when another Delta jet, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, hit "significant" turbulence just a couple of hours into the lengthy trip, and was forced to make an unscheduled landing.

Recently, those on board on a certain international flight endured a terrifying brief five-second bout of severe turbulence. An individual died and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts lifted out of their seats and crashed back down.

Turbulence is a common occurrence during flights, and while instances of rough conditions seem to be rising, they are still very rare.

Research indicates that there are an estimated 5,000 incidents of severe-or-greater turbulence every year, out of a sum of in excess of 35 million flights that currently occur globally.

Severe turbulence is defined as when the vertical motions of a jet going through rough air masses exert in excess of 1.5g-force on your body - a strong enough force to throw you from your seat if you did not have on a seatbelt.

As climate change shifts weather patterns, specialists caution that commercial aviation could become bumpier: warming trends and changing jet streams in the upper atmosphere are projected to heighten the frequency and intensity of dangerous in-flight bumps.