Multiple Injured as In-Flight Disturbance Impacts A Delta Airlines Aircraft into Sydney, Australia

A number of individuals sustained injuries after a Delta Airlines flight originating in LA to Sydney encountered rough air Friday morning.

The flight, numbered 41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it touched down at the Sydney airport, an airline spokesperson stated. A number of the onboard staff were injured.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service said they assessed five individuals, and transferred three of them to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that included pain in the back and head pain. The patients' ages were between their 30s to 70s.

The event represents the most recent case of aircraft being hit by severe turbulence, with researchers pointing out that shifting climate patterns is a significant contributor.

On board were nearly 250 travelers and fifteen staff members on the aircraft, the official said, adding that the plane touched down "safely" at the airport at 06:48 local time on Friday.

The NSW Ambulance Service said they got a call just only 180 seconds ahead of the plane touched down, and response teams were ready and waiting at the airport.

Why plane turbulence is growing more frequent - and potentially more dangerous.

During the past year, 25 people were injured when a separate Delta aircraft, on a route from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, experienced "severe" turbulence just two hours into the transoceanic journey, and had to make an precautionary landing.

Earlier this year, passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines jet went through a harrowing brief five-second period of extreme instability. One passenger lost their life and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts rose out of their seats and crashed back down.

Bumpy air is not uncommon during flights, and while instances of rough conditions seem to be rising, they are remained quite uncommon.

Estimates show that there are approximately thousands of instances of significant in-flight disturbance every year, out of a sum of more than 35 million flights that now take off globally.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is described as when the vertical motions of a jet experiencing rough air masses exert greater than a significant G-force on your body - enough to throw you from your seat if you were not fastened by a seatbelt.

As climate change shifts atmospheric conditions, researchers alert that air travel could become less smooth: shifts in temperature and changing jet streams in the upper atmosphere are expected to increase the regularity and severity of dangerous in-flight bumps.