Several Hurt as Rough Air Hits Delta Plane into Sydney, Australia

Multiple passengers and crew were hurt after a Delta Airlines jet from LA to Sydney, Australia was hit by significant turbulence this past Friday.

Delta Flight 41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it touched down at the Sydney airport, a representative for the carrier stated. A number of the onboard staff sustained injuries.

Local paramedics reported they assessed five patients, and took three of them to the hospital with relatively minor issues that comprised back pain and head pain. The injured spanned from their 30s to 70s.

It is the latest incident of commercial jets being hit by turbulence, with aviation specialists pointing out that climate change is a major factor.

The aircraft was carrying nearly 250 travelers and 15 crew members on the aircraft, the official added, clarifying that the plane touched down "safely" at Sydney Airport at 06:48 local time on Friday.

Emergency responders said they received a call just three minutes ahead of the plane landed, and emergency vehicles were ready and waiting at the airport.

The reasons turbulence is getting more frequent - and often stronger.

During the past year, two dozen individuals were hurt when a separate Delta aircraft, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, hit "considerable" atmospheric disturbance just a couple of hours into the transoceanic journey, and was forced to make an emergency landing.

Recently, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines jet experienced a frightening brief five-second bout of severe turbulence. A traveler passed away and many were hurt, as individuals not fastened in lifted out of their seats and were slammed back.

Bumpy air is not uncommon while flying, and while cases of rough conditions seem to be rising, they are statistically infrequent.

Data suggests that there are an estimated five thousand cases of significant in-flight disturbance annually, out of a overall number of over 35 million flights that currently occur around the world.

Intense turbulence is described as when the vertical motions of a aircraft passing through rough air masses generate more than 1.5g-force on your body - enough to throw you from your seat if you did not have on a restraint.

As a changing climate shifts atmospheric conditions, specialists caution that air travel could become more turbulent: temperature changes and changing jet streams in the jet stream level are expected to boost the regularity and severity of severe turbulence.