A Number of Affected as In-Flight Disturbance Impacts Delta Flight Landing at Sydney, Australia
A number of individuals have been injured when a Delta Airlines aircraft traveling from Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia was hit by significant turbulence Friday morning.
The flight, numbered 41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it landed at Sydney Airport, an airline spokesperson told. Several cabin crew members required medical attention.
Local paramedics said they assessed five patients, and took a trio to hospital with relatively minor issues that included back pain and migraines. The patients' ages were between their thirties and seventies.
The event represents the newest example of planes being hit by turbulence, with aviation specialists indicating that global warming is a major factor.
The aircraft was carrying 245 people and a crew of 15 on the wide-body jet, the official added, adding that the plane arrived "safely" at the airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday morning.
Emergency responders reported they received a call just three minutes prior to the plane touched down, and emergency vehicles were ready and waiting at the airport.
Why plane turbulence is becoming more frequent - and more severe.
Last year, twenty-five passengers and crew were hurt when a separate Delta aircraft, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, experienced "significant" rough air just 120 minutes into the long-haul flight, and had to make an unscheduled landing.
Recently, passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines flight endured a harrowing five seconds bout of severe turbulence. One passenger lost their life and numerous people sustained injuries, as unbelted passengers were thrown from their seats and were slammed back.
In-flight turbulence is fairly routine while flying, and while occurrences of significant turbulence seem to be rising, they are remained quite uncommon.
Research indicates that there are approximately 5,000 incidents of significant in-flight disturbance annually, out of a sum of more than 35 million flights that currently occur worldwide.
Severe turbulence is defined as when the vertical motions of a jet going through unstable air generate in excess of a significant G-force on your body - enough to throw you from your seat if you were not fastened by a safety belt.
As climate change alters atmospheric conditions, researchers alert that flying could become less smooth: temperature changes and shifting wind patterns in the jet stream level are expected to boost the occurrence and strength of dangerous in-flight bumps.