A Number of Hurt as Turbulence Hits Delta Aircraft Landing at Sydney, Australia

Several people have been injured after a Delta aircraft traveling from LA to Sydney, Australia was hit by turbulence this past Friday.

The flight, numbered 41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it landed at the Sydney airport, a representative for the carrier informed. Four flight attendants were injured.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service stated they evaluated five individuals, and transported a trio to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that included pain in the back and head pain. Those affected were between their thirties and seventies.

This marks the most recent case of planes being hit by turbulence, with aviation specialists saying that shifting climate patterns is a major factor.

The aircraft was carrying nearly 250 travelers and 15 crew members on the Airbus A350, the representative said, clarifying that the plane landed "safely and normally" at the airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday morning.

The NSW Ambulance Service reported they received a call just three minutes ahead of the plane touched down, and response teams were waiting on the tarmac.

The reasons turbulence is getting more common - and more severe.

Last year, twenty-five passengers and crew were hurt when a separate Delta aircraft, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, Netherlands, experienced "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 Singapore Airlines flight went through a harrowing short but intense period of extreme instability. An individual lost their life and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts were thrown from their seats and were slammed back.

In-flight turbulence is fairly routine on aircraft journeys, and while occurrences of significant turbulence seem to be rising, they are still very rare.

Estimates show that there are around five thousand cases of severe or worse turbulence every year, out of a total of over 35 million flights that are conducted worldwide.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is categorized as when the sudden jolts of a aircraft going through disturbed air exert in excess of 1.5g-force on your body - enough to throw you from your seat if you weren't wearing a seatbelt.

As a changing climate shifts weather patterns, researchers alert that air travel could become more turbulent: temperature changes and shifting wind patterns in the higher altitudes are likely to boost the frequency and intensity of severe turbulence.