Multiple Hurt as In-Flight Disturbance Strikes A Delta Airlines Flight into Sydney, Australia

Multiple passengers and crew have been injured when a Delta Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia encountered significant turbulence this past Friday.

The flight, numbered 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it touched down at Sydney Airport, a representative for the carrier told. Four flight attendants were injured.

Emergency medical services stated they assessed five individuals, and took three of them to a medical facility with non-life-threatening injuries that comprised pain in the back and headaches. Those affected were between their 30s up to the 70s.

The event represents the latest incident of aircraft being hit by turbulence, with researchers pointing out that shifting climate patterns is a major factor.

There were nearly 250 travelers and fifteen staff members on the wide-body jet, the official added, clarifying that the plane arrived "safely and normally" at the airport at 06:48 local time on Friday.

Emergency responders reported they received a call just three minutes before the plane landed, and ambulances were waiting on the tarmac.

Why in-flight bumpiness is growing more frequent - and more severe.

Last year, twenty-five passengers and crew were hurt when another Delta jet, on a route from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, Netherlands, hit "severe" turbulence just a couple of hours into the lengthy trip, and diverted for an precautionary landing.

Earlier this year, those on board on a Singapore Airlines jet went through a frightening brief five-second period of extreme instability. An individual lost their life and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts 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.

Research indicates that there are approximately thousands of instances of significant in-flight disturbance every year, out of a sum of more than 35 million journeys that now take off around the world.

Intense turbulence is defined as when the sudden jolts of a plane going through unstable air exert in excess of 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - a strong enough force to propel you from your seat if you were not fastened by a safety belt.

As a changing climate alters weather patterns, experts warn that commercial aviation could become less smooth: temperature changes and shifting wind patterns in the jet stream level are projected to increase the frequency and intensity of significant turbulence.