A Number of Hurt as Turbulence Hits Delta Aircraft Landing at Sydney, Australia

A number of individuals were hurt following a Delta Airlines jet originating in LA to Sydney, Australia was hit by significant turbulence on Friday morning.

Flight DL41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at Sydney Airport, a company official informed. Four flight attendants sustained injuries.

Local paramedics said they assessed five individuals, and took three to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that comprised spinal discomfort and headaches. Those affected were between their 30s up to the 70s.

The event represents the latest incident of aircraft experiencing atmospheric disturbance, with experts indicating that shifting climate patterns is a key driver.

On board were 245 passengers and 15 crew members on the aircraft, the official added, adding that the plane landed "safely" at the airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on Friday morning.

Emergency responders reported they were alerted just a mere three minutes prior to the plane arrived, and ambulances were waiting on the tarmac.

Why plane turbulence is getting more common - and potentially more dangerous.

In the previous year, twenty-five passengers and crew were injured when a separate Delta aircraft, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, experienced "significant" atmospheric disturbance just 120 minutes into the lengthy trip, and diverted for an precautionary landing.

Earlier this year, those on board on a Singapore Airlines flight experienced a harrowing brief five-second bout of severe turbulence. One passenger lost their life and dozens were injured, as unbelted passengers were thrown from their seats and crashed back down.

Bumpy air is not uncommon while flying, and while cases of rough conditions appear to be increasing, they are statistically infrequent.

Research indicates that there are an estimated thousands of instances of significant in-flight disturbance annually, out of a sum of over 35 million journeys that now take off worldwide.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is described as when the sudden jolts of a jet going through rough air masses apply in excess of a significant G-force on your body - a strong enough force to throw you from your seat if you weren't wearing a safety belt.

As global warming modifies atmospheric conditions, specialists caution that flying could become less smooth: warming trends and changing jet streams in the upper atmosphere are projected to boost the frequency and intensity of severe turbulence.