Multiple Affected as Turbulence Impacts Delta Aircraft Arriving in Sydney, Australia

A number of individuals sustained injuries when a Delta aircraft traveling from LA to Sydney, Australia experienced significant turbulence Friday morning.

Delta Flight 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it landed at the Sydney airport, an airline spokesperson stated. Several cabin crew members sustained injuries.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service reported they evaluated five individuals, and took three to hospital with minor injuries that comprised spinal discomfort and migraines. Those affected ranged from their 30s up to the 70s.

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

On board were nearly 250 travelers and fifteen staff members on the Airbus A350, the representative said, clarifying that the plane touched down "safely and normally" at Sydney Airport at 06:48 local time on Friday.

Paramedics said they got a call just a mere three minutes prior to the plane landed, and emergency vehicles were standing by on the runway.

Why plane turbulence is getting increasingly prevalent - and potentially more dangerous.

During the past year, two dozen individuals sustained injuries when a Delta Airlines flight, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, Netherlands, encountered "significant" turbulence just 120 minutes into the transoceanic journey, and had to make an precautionary landing.

Recently, passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines jet experienced a terrifying brief five-second bout of severe turbulence. A traveler died and numerous people sustained injuries, as individuals not fastened in rose out of their seats and crashed back down.

Bumpy air is not uncommon while flying, and while instances of strong or severe turbulence are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are still very rare.

Estimates show that there are an estimated five thousand cases of significant in-flight disturbance annually, out of a total of in excess of 35 million aircraft departures that currently occur worldwide.

Severe turbulence is described as when the vertical motions of a aircraft experiencing unstable air apply more than a significant G-force on your body - sufficient force to throw you from your seat if you did not have on a seatbelt.

As climate change shifts weather patterns, researchers alert that air travel could become less smooth: shifts in temperature and shifting wind patterns in the upper atmosphere are projected to boost the frequency and intensity of dangerous in-flight bumps.