Multiple Hurt as Turbulence Impacts Delta Plane Arriving in Sydney, Australia

A number of individuals have been injured after a Delta jet from Los Angeles to Sydney experienced significant turbulence Friday morning.

The flight, numbered 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it touched down at Sydney Airport, a representative for the carrier stated. Four flight attendants required medical attention.

Emergency medical services said they treated five patients, and took three of them to a medical facility with relatively minor issues that such as back pain and headaches. The injured ranged from their 30s to 70s.

This marks the newest example of commercial jets encountering turbulence, with aviation specialists saying that shifting climate patterns is a major factor.

On board were 245 people and fifteen staff members on the Airbus A350, the official added, stating that the plane touched down "safely and normally" at the airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on Friday morning.

Paramedics reported they received a call just a mere three minutes ahead of the plane touched down, and ambulances were ready and waiting at the airport.

Why in-flight bumpiness is becoming more common - and potentially more dangerous.

In the previous year, twenty-five passengers and crew sustained injuries when a Delta Airlines flight, on a route from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, experienced "significant" turbulence just a couple of hours into the long-haul flight, and was forced to make an emergency landing.

Earlier this year, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines flight went through a terrifying brief five-second period of extreme instability. A traveler passed away and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts rose out of their seats and were slammed back.

Bumpy air is a common occurrence on aircraft journeys, and while instances of strong or severe turbulence seem to be rising, they are remained quite uncommon.

Estimates show that there are approximately thousands of instances of significant in-flight disturbance each year, out of a sum of more than 35 million aircraft departures that currently occur around the world.

Severe turbulence is categorized as when the vertical motions of a jet going through unstable air generate in excess of 1.5g-force on your body - sufficient force to lift you out of your seat if you did not have on a restraint.

As global warming shifts weather patterns, experts warn that commercial aviation could become less smooth: warming trends and changing jet streams in the jet stream level are expected to heighten the occurrence and strength of significant turbulence.