Several Affected as In-Flight Disturbance Strikes Delta Flight Arriving in Sydney

A number of individuals have been injured after a Delta Airlines jet originating in Los Angeles to Sydney encountered significant turbulence on Friday morning.

Delta Flight 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at Sydney Airport, a representative for the carrier stated. Several cabin crew members were injured.

Emergency medical services reported they assessed five individuals, and took a trio to the hospital with minor injuries that such as spinal discomfort and headaches. Those affected were between their 30s up to the 70s.

It is the newest example of planes being hit by atmospheric disturbance, with aviation specialists pointing out that global warming is a key driver.

There were 245 passengers and fifteen staff members on the Airbus A350, the official added, clarifying that the plane arrived "without further incident" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on the day in question.

Paramedics said they got a call just only 180 seconds ahead of the plane arrived, and response teams were standing by on the runway.

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

In the previous year, 25 people were injured when a separate Delta aircraft, flying from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, encountered "severe" turbulence just a couple of hours into the transoceanic journey, and had to make an emergency landing.

Earlier this year, those on board on a Singapore Airlines jet endured a harrowing brief five-second period of extreme instability. One passenger passed away and many were hurt, as individuals not fastened in rose out of their seats and crashed back down.

Turbulence is not uncommon during flights, and while cases of significant turbulence are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are statistically infrequent.

Estimates show that there are approximately 5,000 incidents of severe-or-greater turbulence each year, out of a total of more than 35 million aircraft departures that are conducted worldwide.

Intense turbulence is described as when the up and down movements of a plane experiencing disturbed air exert greater than 1.5g-force on your body - sufficient force to propel you from your seat if you weren't wearing a safety belt.

As global warming alters the conditions in the sky, experts warn that commercial aviation could become less smooth: warming trends and changing jet streams in the upper atmosphere are likely to heighten the frequency and intensity of severe turbulence.