Several Affected as In-Flight Disturbance Strikes Delta Plane into Sydney, Australia

A number of individuals have been injured following a Delta aircraft traveling from LA to Sydney was hit by rough air this past Friday.

The flight, numbered 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at the Sydney airport, a representative for the carrier told. Several cabin crew members required medical attention.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service stated they evaluated five individuals, and transported three of them to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that comprised back pain and head pain. The injured ranged from their thirties and seventies.

The event represents the most recent case of planes encountering atmospheric disturbance, with experts saying that climate change is a major factor.

The aircraft was carrying 245 passengers and fifteen staff members on the aircraft, the representative said, stating that the plane arrived "without further incident" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday.

The NSW Ambulance Service reported they received a call just only 180 seconds ahead of the plane landed, and emergency vehicles were waiting on the tarmac.

The reasons turbulence is getting more frequent - and often stronger.

In the previous year, 25 people sustained injuries when another Delta jet, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, encountered "severe" turbulence just two hours into the transoceanic journey, and had to make an unscheduled landing.

Earlier this year, those on board on a Singapore Airlines flight experienced a frightening short but intense bout of severe turbulence. A traveler passed away and numerous people sustained injuries, as unbelted passengers rose out of their seats and fell back down.

In-flight turbulence is not uncommon on aircraft journeys, and while instances of significant turbulence are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are still very rare.

Data suggests that there are an estimated 5,000 incidents of severe-or-greater turbulence every year, out of a sum of over 35 million journeys that are conducted worldwide.

Severe turbulence is categorized as when the vertical motions of a jet going through rough air masses apply more than 1.5g-force on your body - sufficient force to throw you from your seat if you weren't wearing a safety belt.

As climate change shifts the conditions in the sky, researchers alert that flying could become less smooth: temperature changes and changing jet streams in the higher altitudes are projected to heighten the regularity and severity of dangerous in-flight bumps.