Several Injured as Rough Air Impacts A Delta Airlines Aircraft Landing at Sydney

Multiple passengers and crew were hurt following a Delta flight traveling from LA to Sydney, Australia experienced 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 stated. A number of the onboard staff required medical attention.

Emergency medical services said they treated a total of five people, and took three to a medical facility with non-life-threatening injuries that comprised pain in the back and head pain. The patients' ages spanned from their 30s up to the 70s.

The event represents the newest example of aircraft experiencing turbulence, with aviation specialists saying that climate change is a key driver.

On board were 245 passengers and fifteen staff members on the wide-body jet, the Delta spokesperson added, adding that the plane touched down "safely and normally" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday.

The NSW Ambulance Service said they were alerted just three minutes prior to the plane touched down, and response teams were standing by on the runway.

Why plane turbulence is getting increasingly prevalent - and potentially more dangerous.

During the past year, 25 people sustained injuries when a separate Delta aircraft, on a route from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, encountered "significant" turbulence just 120 minutes into the transoceanic journey, and had to make an precautionary landing.

Recently, those on board on a certain international flight went through a frightening brief five-second period of extreme instability. One passenger passed away and dozens were injured, as individuals not fastened in were thrown from their seats and were slammed back.

Bumpy air is a common occurrence during flights, and while occurrences of strong or severe turbulence seem to be rising, they are still very rare.

Research indicates that there are approximately five thousand cases of severe or worse turbulence every year, out of a sum of more than 35 million journeys that currently occur around the world.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is categorized as when the vertical motions of a plane experiencing rough air masses apply in excess of 1.5g-force on your body - sufficient force to lift you out of your seat if you did not have on a restraint.

As a changing climate shifts atmospheric conditions, experts warn that flying could become more turbulent: temperature changes and changing jet streams in the upper atmosphere are expected to heighten the occurrence and strength of dangerous in-flight bumps.