Several Hurt as Turbulence Impacts A Delta Airlines Plane Landing at Sydney, Australia

Several people sustained injuries after a Delta flight traveling from LA to Sydney encountered significant turbulence this past Friday.

Flight DL41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at Sydney Airport, a representative for the carrier informed. Four flight attendants sustained injuries.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service stated they assessed five patients, and transported three to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that included spinal discomfort and migraines. The patients' ages ranged from their 30s to 70s.

It is the most recent case of aircraft being hit by turbulence, with researchers indicating that climate change is a major factor.

There were 245 passengers and fifteen staff members on the wide-body jet, the Delta spokesperson said, clarifying that the plane touched down "safely" at the airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday.

Emergency responders indicated they received a call just a mere three minutes before the plane arrived, and response teams were waiting on the tarmac.

Why plane turbulence is getting increasingly prevalent - and more severe.

During the past year, twenty-five passengers and crew were hurt when a Delta Airlines flight, flying from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, Netherlands, hit "considerable" atmospheric disturbance just 120 minutes into the transoceanic journey, and diverted for an unscheduled landing.

Recently, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines jet experienced a frightening five seconds of severe turbulence. A traveler died and numerous people sustained injuries, as unbelted passengers rose out of their seats and fell back down.

Turbulence is not uncommon during flights, and while cases of significant turbulence are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are still very rare.

Estimates show that there are an estimated 5,000 incidents of severe or worse turbulence each year, out of a total of over 35 million journeys that currently occur globally.

Intense turbulence is defined as when the vertical motions of a jet passing through unstable air generate more than 1.5g-force on your body - enough to throw you from your seat if you were not fastened by a restraint.

As climate change shifts weather patterns, specialists caution that air travel could become more turbulent: warming trends and shifting wind patterns in the jet stream level are likely to boost the occurrence and strength of severe turbulence.