Multiple Injured as In-Flight Disturbance Impacts Delta Plane Arriving in Sydney, Australia

Several people sustained injuries when a Delta aircraft traveling from LA to Sydney, Australia encountered rough air on Friday morning.

The flight, numbered 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it touched down at Sydney Airport, an airline spokesperson told. Four flight attendants required medical attention.

Emergency medical services stated they assessed five patients, and transferred three to a medical facility with non-life-threatening injuries that comprised back pain and migraines. The injured ranged from their 30s up to the 70s.

It is the newest example of planes encountering severe turbulence, with aviation specialists saying that global warming is a significant contributor.

The aircraft was carrying 245 passengers and a crew of 15 on the aircraft, the Delta spokesperson noted, stating that the plane touched down "safely and normally" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on the day in question.

Emergency responders reported they got a call just a mere three minutes ahead of the plane touched down, and response teams were ready and waiting at the airport.

Why in-flight bumpiness is getting more frequent - and potentially more dangerous.

Last year, 25 people were injured when another Delta jet, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, Netherlands, hit "severe" rough air just two hours into the lengthy trip, and had to make an unscheduled landing.

Recently, those on board on a Singapore Airlines flight endured a harrowing brief five-second period of extreme instability. One passenger died and many were hurt, as unbelted passengers were thrown from their seats and were slammed back.

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

Research indicates that there are approximately thousands of instances of severe-or-greater turbulence each year, out of a total of more than 35 million journeys that currently occur worldwide.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is categorized as when the vertical motions of a plane passing through disturbed air generate in excess of 1.5g-force on your body - sufficient force to lift you out of your seat if you weren't wearing a safety belt.

As climate change modifies atmospheric conditions, researchers alert that commercial aviation could become bumpier: warming trends and shifting wind patterns in the jet stream level are expected to boost the occurrence and strength of dangerous in-flight bumps.