A Number of Affected as Rough Air Hits Delta Flight Arriving in Sydney, Australia

Multiple passengers and crew sustained injuries when a Delta Airlines flight originating in Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia encountered turbulence Friday morning.

The flight, numbered 41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it touched down at Sydney Airport, an airline spokesperson told. Several cabin crew members were injured.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service reported they evaluated a total of five people, and took a trio to the hospital with minor injuries that included spinal discomfort and head pain. The patients' ages were between their 30s to 70s.

This marks the newest example of planes being hit by severe turbulence, with aviation specialists pointing out that global warming is a significant contributor.

The aircraft was carrying 245 people and fifteen staff members on the Airbus A350, the representative said, clarifying that the plane landed "safely and normally" at the airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday.

Emergency responders said they were alerted just three minutes before the plane landed, and emergency vehicles were standing by on the runway.

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

In the previous year, twenty-five passengers and crew were hurt when a separate Delta aircraft, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, Netherlands, encountered "considerable" atmospheric disturbance just 120 minutes into the transoceanic journey, and had to make an emergency landing.

Earlier this year, passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines flight went through a harrowing five seconds period of extreme instability. A traveler died and numerous people sustained injuries, as those without seatbelts rose out of their seats and crashed back down.

In-flight turbulence is fairly routine on aircraft journeys, and while instances of significant turbulence appear to be increasing, they are still very rare.

Estimates show that there are approximately 5,000 incidents of severe or worse turbulence annually, out of a total of in excess of 35 million aircraft departures that currently occur worldwide.

Severe turbulence is defined as when the sudden jolts of a plane going through disturbed air apply in excess of 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - sufficient force to throw you from your seat if you were not fastened by a safety belt.

As climate change shifts atmospheric conditions, researchers alert that commercial aviation could become more turbulent: shifts in temperature and altered air currents in the upper atmosphere are likely to increase the occurrence and strength of severe turbulence.