Several Affected as In-Flight Disturbance Hits Delta Plane Arriving in Sydney, Australia

Several people sustained injuries following a Delta Airlines jet originating in LA to Sydney, Australia encountered significant turbulence on Friday morning.

Flight DL41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it landed at the Sydney airport, an airline spokesperson stated. A number of the onboard staff sustained injuries.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service said they treated five patients, and transported three of them to the hospital with relatively minor issues that such as back pain and headaches. Those affected ranged from their 30s up to the 70s.

This marks the most recent case of aircraft being hit by atmospheric disturbance, with experts indicating that climate change is a major factor.

There were 245 passengers and 15 crew members on the wide-body jet, the Delta spokesperson said, adding that the plane landed "safely and normally" at the airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday morning.

Paramedics indicated they received a call just only 180 seconds prior to the plane landed, and ambulances were standing by on the runway.

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

Last year, two dozen individuals were hurt when a Delta Airlines flight, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, experienced "considerable" turbulence just two hours into the transoceanic journey, and was forced to make an emergency landing.

Earlier this year, passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines jet went through a terrifying short but intense bout of severe turbulence. An individual died and numerous people sustained injuries, as those without seatbelts were thrown from their seats and crashed back down.

Turbulence is not uncommon while flying, and while instances of significant turbulence appear to be increasing, they are still very rare.

Research indicates that there are approximately 5,000 incidents of severe-or-greater turbulence every year, out of a total of over 35 million aircraft departures that currently occur around the world.

Intense turbulence is defined as when the vertical motions of a plane experiencing disturbed air generate in excess of 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - sufficient force to lift you out of your seat if you did not have on a seatbelt.

As climate change alters weather patterns, researchers alert that flying could become less smooth: shifts in temperature and changing jet streams in the upper atmosphere are projected to heighten the occurrence and strength of dangerous in-flight bumps.