Several Injured as Rough Air Strikes Delta Aircraft into Sydney

Multiple passengers and crew sustained injuries when a Delta Airlines flight traveling from LA to Sydney encountered rough air this past Friday.

Flight DL41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at Sydney Airport, a representative for the carrier told. A number of the onboard staff required medical attention.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service reported they treated five patients, and took three to hospital with relatively minor issues that comprised back pain and headaches. The injured ranged from their 30s up to the 70s.

This marks the most recent case of commercial jets encountering turbulence, with aviation specialists indicating that climate change is a major factor.

On board were nearly 250 travelers and 15 crew members on the wide-body jet, the Delta spokesperson added, clarifying that the plane arrived "safely and normally" at Sydney Airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on the day in question.

Paramedics reported they were alerted just only 180 seconds before the plane landed, and emergency vehicles were standing by on the runway.

Why in-flight bumpiness is growing more common - and often stronger.

Last year, twenty-five passengers and crew were hurt when a separate Delta aircraft, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, Netherlands, experienced "significant" turbulence just a couple of hours into the long-haul flight, and diverted for an precautionary landing.

Recently, those on board on a Singapore Airlines jet went through a terrifying short but intense period of extreme instability. One passenger passed away and numerous people sustained injuries, as those without seatbelts rose out of their seats and crashed back down.

Turbulence is fairly routine during flights, and while occurrences of strong or severe turbulence seem to be rising, they are still very rare.

Estimates show that there are an estimated five thousand cases of severe or worse turbulence each year, out of a sum of in excess of 35 million flights that now take off around the world.

Intense turbulence is defined as when the up and down movements of a aircraft going through unstable air exert more than 1.5g-force on your body - sufficient force to throw you from your seat if you weren't wearing a seatbelt.

As global warming alters the conditions in the sky, researchers alert that air travel could become bumpier: temperature changes and shifting wind patterns in the higher altitudes are projected to heighten the occurrence and strength of dangerous in-flight bumps.