Multiple Injured as Turbulence Strikes A Delta Airlines Aircraft into Sydney

Multiple passengers and crew were hurt after a Delta aircraft from LA to Sydney encountered significant turbulence Friday morning.

Flight DL41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it landed at Sydney Airport, an airline spokesperson stated. Several cabin crew members required medical attention.

Emergency medical services said they treated five patients, and transported three of them to a medical facility with minor injuries that included back pain and headaches. The injured spanned from their 30s to 70s.

The event represents the newest example of aircraft encountering turbulence, with aviation specialists indicating that climate change is a key driver.

The aircraft was carrying nearly 250 travelers and fifteen staff members on the wide-body jet, the official said, clarifying that the plane landed "safely and normally" at the airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday morning.

Emergency responders reported they got a call just a mere three minutes before the plane arrived, and response teams were ready and waiting at the airport.

Why in-flight bumpiness is becoming increasingly prevalent - and often stronger.

During the past year, twenty-five passengers and crew were hurt when a separate Delta aircraft, flying from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, Netherlands, hit "severe" turbulence just two hours into the long-haul flight, and had to make an unscheduled landing.

Earlier this year, those on board on a Singapore Airlines flight experienced a terrifying brief five-second of severe turbulence. One passenger lost their life and numerous people sustained injuries, as unbelted passengers lifted out of their seats and crashed back down.

Turbulence is a common occurrence while flying, and while instances of significant turbulence appear to be increasing, they are still very rare.

Data suggests that there are approximately five thousand cases of severe or worse turbulence each year, out of a sum of more than 35 million flights that now take off around the world.

Severe turbulence is defined as when the up and down movements of a jet experiencing unstable air exert greater than a significant G-force on your body - sufficient force to lift you out of your seat if you did not have on a restraint.

As global warming alters the conditions in the sky, specialists caution that commercial aviation could become bumpier: temperature changes and changing jet streams in the jet stream level are expected to boost the frequency and intensity of significant turbulence.