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

Several people have been injured following a Delta Airlines flight from Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia experienced turbulence this past Friday.

The flight, numbered 41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it landed at Sydney Airport, an airline spokesperson informed. Four flight attendants required medical attention.

Emergency medical services said they treated five individuals, and transferred three of them to hospital with minor injuries that such as pain in the back and head pain. The patients' ages ranged from their 30s up to the 70s.

The event represents the most recent case of planes being hit by atmospheric disturbance, with aviation specialists pointing out that shifting climate patterns is a significant contributor.

There were nearly 250 travelers and a crew of 15 on the Airbus A350, the representative added, adding that the plane arrived "without further incident" at Sydney Airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on the day in question.

Emergency responders said they got a call just three minutes prior to the plane landed, and ambulances were standing by on the runway.

Why plane turbulence is becoming more frequent - and often stronger.

In the previous year, 25 people were hurt when a Delta Airlines flight, on a route from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, hit "considerable" turbulence just 120 minutes into the transoceanic journey, and diverted for an unscheduled landing.

Recently, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines flight went through a terrifying brief five-second bout of severe turbulence. A traveler died and dozens were injured, as those without seatbelts were thrown from their seats and fell back down.

In-flight turbulence is not uncommon during flights, and while occurrences of significant turbulence seem to be rising, they are still very rare.

Data suggests that there are approximately thousands of instances of significant in-flight disturbance annually, out of a sum of over 35 million journeys that now take off worldwide.

Severe turbulence is described as when the sudden jolts of a aircraft passing through disturbed air generate in excess of a significant G-force on your body - enough to propel you from your seat if you were not fastened by a safety belt.

As global warming modifies weather patterns, experts warn that flying could become more turbulent: shifts in temperature and shifting wind patterns in the upper atmosphere are expected to boost the regularity and severity of significant turbulence.