Several Affected as Rough Air Strikes Delta Flight into Sydney, Australia

A number of individuals have been injured after a Delta Airlines aircraft traveling from Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia was hit by turbulence on 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 told. Several cabin crew members required medical attention.

Emergency medical services stated they treated five patients, and transported three to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that included pain in the back and headaches. Those affected were between their thirties and seventies.

The event represents the newest example of aircraft encountering atmospheric disturbance, with experts pointing out that shifting climate patterns is a key driver.

There were 245 people and 15 crew members on the aircraft, the official noted, stating that the plane arrived "safely and normally" at the airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on the day in question.

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

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

Last year, 25 people were injured when another Delta jet, on a route from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, experienced "severe" rough air just 120 minutes into the lengthy trip, and was forced to make an emergency landing.

Recently, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines flight experienced a terrifying brief five-second period of extreme instability. A traveler passed away and numerous people sustained injuries, as those without seatbelts were thrown from their seats and crashed back down.

In-flight turbulence is fairly routine during flights, and while instances of significant turbulence are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are statistically infrequent.

Data suggests that there are around thousands of instances of severe or worse turbulence annually, out of a total of in excess of 35 million flights that now take off worldwide.

Severe turbulence is categorized as when the sudden jolts of a aircraft experiencing disturbed air apply in excess of 1.5g-force on your body - a strong enough force to lift you out of your seat if you weren't wearing a restraint.

As a changing climate alters weather patterns, researchers alert that flying could become less smooth: shifts in temperature and shifting wind patterns in the higher altitudes are expected to boost the frequency and intensity of significant turbulence.