Multiple Affected as In-Flight Disturbance Strikes A Delta Airlines Aircraft Arriving in Sydney

Several people have been injured when a Delta Airlines flight traveling from Los Angeles to Sydney was hit by significant turbulence Friday morning.

Flight DL41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it touched down at the Sydney airport, an airline spokesperson stated. Four flight attendants required medical attention.

Emergency medical services said they assessed five patients, and took three to a medical facility with relatively minor issues that such as back pain and migraines. The patients' ages spanned from their 30s up to the 70s.

It is the most recent case of aircraft being hit by severe turbulence, with experts saying that global warming is a key driver.

On board were 245 people and fifteen staff members on the wide-body jet, the official added, clarifying that the plane touched down "safely and normally" at the airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on the day in question.

The NSW Ambulance Service indicated they received a call just a mere three minutes before the plane landed, and ambulances were standing by on the runway.

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

In the previous year, 25 people sustained injuries when a Delta Airlines flight, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, encountered "significant" rough air just a couple of hours into the long-haul flight, and diverted for an precautionary landing.

Recently, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines flight experienced a harrowing short but intense period of extreme instability. One passenger passed away and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts rose out of their seats and crashed back down.

Bumpy air is a common occurrence on aircraft journeys, and while cases of rough conditions appear to be increasing, they are remained quite uncommon.

Estimates show that there are around 5,000 incidents of severe-or-greater turbulence every year, out of a sum of in excess of 35 million journeys that currently occur worldwide.

Severe turbulence is categorized as when the vertical motions of a plane going through unstable air exert greater than 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - sufficient force to propel you from your seat if you were not fastened by a safety belt.

As global warming modifies weather patterns, specialists caution that flying could become bumpier: temperature changes and shifting wind patterns in the jet stream level are projected to boost the frequency and intensity of significant turbulence.