Multiple Hurt as Turbulence Impacts A Delta Airlines Aircraft Arriving in Sydney, Australia

A number of individuals sustained injuries following a Delta aircraft originating in LA to Sydney, Australia was hit by turbulence 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 company official told. Several cabin crew members sustained injuries.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service said they treated a total of five people, and took a trio to a medical facility with relatively minor issues that comprised pain in the back and migraines. The injured ranged from their 30s up to the 70s.

It is the most recent case of commercial jets encountering atmospheric disturbance, with researchers pointing out that shifting climate patterns is a major factor.

The aircraft was carrying 245 passengers and a crew of 15 on the aircraft, the official added, stating that the plane landed "safely" at Sydney Airport at 06:48 local time on Friday morning.

Paramedics reported they got a call just only 180 seconds prior to the plane landed, and ambulances were standing by on the runway.

Why in-flight bumpiness is becoming increasingly prevalent - and potentially more dangerous.

Last year, 25 people were injured when a separate Delta aircraft, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, hit "severe" atmospheric disturbance just 120 minutes into the lengthy trip, and diverted for an unscheduled landing.

Earlier this year, passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines jet went through a frightening brief five-second of severe turbulence. A traveler died and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts were thrown from their seats and crashed back down.

In-flight turbulence is a common occurrence while flying, and while occurrences of rough conditions seem to be rising, they are remained quite uncommon.

Research indicates that there are around five thousand cases of severe-or-greater turbulence annually, out of a overall number of more than 35 million flights that are conducted globally.

Intense turbulence is categorized as when the vertical motions of a plane going through rough air masses exert greater than a significant G-force on your body - sufficient force to throw you from your seat if you did not have on a seatbelt.

As global warming alters the conditions in the sky, researchers alert that flying could become less smooth: temperature changes and shifting wind patterns in the upper atmosphere are likely to heighten the regularity and severity of significant turbulence.