A Number of Affected as Turbulence Strikes Delta Plane Landing at Sydney, Australia

Several people have been injured when a Delta flight traveling from LA to Sydney encountered rough air this past Friday.

Delta Flight 41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it touched down at the Sydney airport, a company official told. A number of the onboard staff required medical attention.

Emergency medical services said they evaluated five patients, and took three of them to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that included pain in the back and headaches. The injured ranged from their thirties and seventies.

It is the most recent case of aircraft encountering atmospheric disturbance, with aviation specialists indicating that global warming is a major factor.

The aircraft was carrying 245 people and 15 crew members on the Airbus A350, the Delta spokesperson added, clarifying that the plane arrived "safely and normally" at Sydney Airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on the day in question.

Paramedics said they received a call just a mere three minutes before the plane landed, and response teams were ready and waiting at the airport.

Why plane turbulence is growing increasingly prevalent - and often stronger.

During the past year, 25 people sustained injuries when a separate Delta aircraft, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, hit "considerable" turbulence just 120 minutes into the lengthy trip, and diverted for an precautionary landing.

Recently, those on board on a certain international flight went through a terrifying short but intense of severe turbulence. One passenger passed away and many were hurt, as individuals not fastened in rose out of their seats and crashed back down.

In-flight turbulence is fairly routine on aircraft journeys, and while cases of significant turbulence appear to be increasing, they are statistically infrequent.

Estimates show that there are around five thousand cases of significant in-flight disturbance every year, out of a sum of over 35 million aircraft departures that are conducted around the world.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is categorized as when the vertical motions of a jet experiencing unstable air apply more than a significant G-force on your body - enough to throw you from your seat if you weren't wearing a restraint.

As global warming shifts the conditions in the sky, researchers alert that air travel could become more turbulent: warming trends and shifting wind patterns in the jet stream level are expected to boost the regularity and severity of significant turbulence.