A Number of Hurt as Turbulence Strikes Delta Flight Landing at Sydney, Australia

Multiple passengers and crew were hurt following a Delta flight originating in LA to Sydney, Australia encountered rough air on Friday morning.

The flight, numbered 41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it touched down at the Sydney airport, a company official stated. Four flight attendants required medical attention.

Emergency medical services reported they assessed five patients, and took three to hospital with relatively minor issues that such as pain in the back and migraines. The injured ranged from their thirties and seventies.

It is the newest example of commercial jets encountering severe turbulence, with aviation specialists pointing out that global warming is a major factor.

On board were 245 people and a crew of 15 on the aircraft, the Delta spokesperson said, clarifying that the plane arrived "safely" at the airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday morning.

Emergency responders indicated they were alerted just only 180 seconds before the plane touched down, and response teams were standing by on the runway.

Why in-flight bumpiness is becoming more common - and potentially more dangerous.

In the previous year, twenty-five passengers and crew were hurt when another Delta jet, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, experienced "significant" rough air just two hours into the transoceanic journey, and diverted for an emergency landing.

Earlier this year, those on board on a Singapore Airlines flight endured a harrowing brief five-second of severe turbulence. One passenger passed away and many were hurt, as individuals not fastened in were thrown from their seats and fell back down.

Turbulence is a common occurrence during flights, and while cases of significant turbulence are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are still very rare.

Estimates show that there are around thousands of instances of severe-or-greater turbulence every year, out of a sum of more than 35 million journeys that are conducted globally.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is described as when the sudden jolts of a plane experiencing unstable air apply in excess of a significant G-force on your body - a strong enough force to propel you from your seat if you were not fastened by a restraint.

As a changing climate shifts atmospheric conditions, researchers alert that flying could become bumpier: warming trends and shifting wind patterns in the higher altitudes are projected to boost the occurrence and strength of significant turbulence.