Multiple Injured as Rough Air Impacts A Delta Airlines Aircraft Landing at Sydney

A number of individuals sustained injuries after a Delta Airlines aircraft originating in Los Angeles to Sydney was hit by turbulence Friday morning.

Flight DL41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it landed at Sydney Airport, a representative for the carrier told. Four flight attendants were injured.

Emergency medical services stated they treated a total of five people, and took three to the hospital with minor injuries that included back pain and headaches. The patients' ages spanned from their 30s up to the 70s.

It is the latest incident of planes experiencing severe turbulence, with aviation specialists saying that climate change is a significant contributor.

The aircraft was carrying 245 passengers and 15 crew members on the aircraft, the official noted, clarifying that the plane landed "safely" at Sydney Airport at 06:48 local time on Friday.

The NSW Ambulance Service said they were alerted just three minutes before the plane landed, and emergency vehicles were waiting on the tarmac.

The reasons turbulence is getting more frequent - and potentially more dangerous.

In the previous year, two dozen individuals were injured when a Delta Airlines flight, flying from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, Netherlands, experienced "severe" atmospheric disturbance just 120 minutes into the long-haul flight, and was forced to make an precautionary landing.

Earlier this year, those on board on a Singapore Airlines jet went through a frightening short but intense bout of severe turbulence. A traveler lost their life and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts were thrown from their seats and were slammed back.

Turbulence is fairly routine during flights, and while occurrences of strong or severe turbulence appear to be increasing, they are still very rare.

Research indicates that there are around 5,000 incidents of severe-or-greater turbulence every year, out of a overall number of in excess of 35 million flights that now take off worldwide.

Severe turbulence is categorized as when the vertical motions of a aircraft passing through unstable air generate greater than 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - sufficient force to propel you from your seat if you did not have on a seatbelt.

As climate change modifies atmospheric conditions, researchers alert that commercial aviation could become more turbulent: warming trends and altered air currents in the jet stream level are likely to increase the occurrence and strength of significant turbulence.