Multiple Injured as Rough Air Impacts A Delta Airlines Plane Arriving in Sydney, Australia

A number of individuals were hurt when a Delta Airlines aircraft from LA to Sydney, Australia experienced rough air Friday morning.

Flight DL41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at the Sydney airport, a representative for the carrier informed. Several cabin crew members sustained injuries.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service said they assessed a total of five people, and took a trio to the hospital with relatively minor issues that included pain in the back and migraines. The injured spanned from their 30s up to the 70s.

The event represents the latest incident of aircraft experiencing atmospheric disturbance, with aviation specialists pointing out that global warming is a major factor.

On board were nearly 250 travelers and fifteen staff members on the aircraft, the Delta spokesperson added, adding that the plane touched down "without further incident" at Sydney Airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on the day in question.

Emergency responders indicated they were alerted just three minutes prior to the plane landed, and ambulances were waiting on the tarmac.

Why in-flight bumpiness is growing more common - and more severe.

During the past year, 25 people were hurt when another Delta jet, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, encountered "considerable" turbulence just 120 minutes into the long-haul flight, and had to make an precautionary landing.

Recently, passengers and crew on a certain international flight experienced a harrowing short but intense bout of severe turbulence. One passenger lost their life and numerous people sustained injuries, as unbelted passengers were thrown from their seats and crashed back down.

In-flight turbulence is fairly routine while flying, and while cases of rough conditions are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are still very rare.

Data suggests that there are approximately 5,000 incidents of severe or worse turbulence annually, out of a sum of over 35 million aircraft departures that are conducted around the world.

Severe turbulence is defined as when the vertical motions of a jet going through unstable air generate in excess of 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - enough to lift you out of your seat if you weren't wearing a restraint.

As a changing climate alters the conditions in the sky, experts warn that commercial aviation could become bumpier: shifts in temperature and altered air currents in the higher altitudes are likely to boost the occurrence and strength of severe turbulence.