Several Affected as Rough Air Hits A Delta Airlines Plane Landing at Sydney, Australia
A number of individuals have been injured when a Delta Airlines jet traveling from LA to Sydney, Australia encountered significant turbulence on Friday morning.
The flight, numbered 41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at the Sydney airport, a representative for the carrier told. Four flight attendants sustained injuries.
The New South Wales Ambulance Service said they assessed a total of five people, and took a trio to hospital with minor injuries that comprised spinal discomfort and migraines. The injured spanned from their 30s to 70s.
The event represents the most recent case of commercial jets experiencing turbulence, with researchers saying that shifting climate patterns is a major factor.
There were 245 people and a crew of 15 on the aircraft, the official added, clarifying that the plane touched down "safely" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on the day in question.
The NSW Ambulance Service said they were alerted just three minutes before the plane arrived, and emergency vehicles were standing by on the runway.
Why in-flight bumpiness is growing more common - and potentially more dangerous.
Last year, 25 people were injured when a Delta Airlines flight, on a route from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, Netherlands, experienced "significant" atmospheric disturbance just two hours into the transoceanic journey, and diverted for an unscheduled landing.
Earlier this year, those on board on a certain international flight endured a harrowing brief five-second bout of severe turbulence. An individual lost their life and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts rose out of their seats and crashed back down.
In-flight turbulence is a common occurrence during flights, and while cases of strong or severe turbulence seem to be rising, they are remained quite uncommon.
Research indicates that there are an estimated thousands of instances of significant in-flight disturbance each year, out of a sum of in excess of 35 million flights that currently occur around the world.
Severe turbulence is categorized as when the vertical motions of a aircraft experiencing rough air masses exert greater than 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - sufficient force to lift you out of your seat if you were not fastened by a seatbelt.
As global warming alters the conditions in the sky, researchers alert that flying could become less smooth: temperature changes and changing jet streams in the higher altitudes are projected to increase the frequency and intensity of dangerous in-flight bumps.
