Multiple Hurt as Rough Air Strikes A Delta Airlines Flight Landing at Sydney, Australia

Multiple passengers and crew were hurt after a Delta jet traveling from LA to Sydney encountered rough air on Friday morning.

Flight DL41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it landed at Sydney Airport, a representative for the carrier informed. A number of the onboard staff were injured.

Emergency medical services said they treated a total of five people, and took a trio to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that such as spinal discomfort and migraines. The injured ranged from their 30s to 70s.

The event represents the newest example of planes experiencing turbulence, with aviation specialists pointing out that climate change is a major factor.

The aircraft was carrying 245 people and a crew of 15 on the Airbus A350, the official added, stating that the plane landed "without further incident" at the airport at 06:48 local time on Friday.

The NSW Ambulance Service reported they received a call just three minutes before the plane touched down, and ambulances were ready and waiting at the airport.

The reasons turbulence is getting more common - and potentially more dangerous.

In the previous year, twenty-five passengers and crew were injured when another Delta jet, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, hit "significant" atmospheric disturbance just a couple of hours into the long-haul flight, and diverted for an emergency landing.

Recently, those on board on a certain international flight endured a frightening brief five-second of severe turbulence. One passenger passed away and many were hurt, as unbelted passengers were thrown from their seats and fell back down.

In-flight turbulence is fairly routine during flights, and while occurrences of rough conditions appear to be increasing, they are still very rare.

Estimates show that there are around five thousand cases of significant in-flight disturbance each year, out of a total of in excess of 35 million aircraft departures that currently occur globally.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is categorized as when the sudden jolts of a plane passing through unstable air apply in excess of 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - sufficient force to lift you out of your seat if you weren't wearing a safety belt.

As a changing climate modifies weather patterns, specialists caution that flying could become less smooth: warming trends and altered air currents in the jet stream level are projected to heighten the frequency and intensity of dangerous in-flight bumps.