Several Injured as In-Flight Disturbance Impacts A Delta Airlines Plane into Sydney
A number of individuals were hurt when a Delta Airlines jet originating in LA to Sydney was hit by turbulence Friday morning.
Delta Flight 41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at Sydney Airport, a representative for the carrier told. Several cabin crew members sustained injuries.
Local paramedics reported they treated five patients, and transferred three of them to the hospital with minor injuries that comprised pain in the back and headaches. The patients' ages were between their 30s to 70s.
The event represents the latest incident of aircraft experiencing atmospheric disturbance, with aviation specialists indicating that climate change is a major factor.
On board were 245 people and fifteen staff members on the Airbus A350, the official added, adding that the plane landed "safely" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday.
Emergency responders indicated they were alerted just a mere three minutes ahead of the plane touched down, and emergency vehicles were waiting on the tarmac.
Why plane turbulence is becoming more frequent - and potentially more dangerous.
Last year, two dozen individuals sustained injuries when a Delta Airlines flight, on a route from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, Netherlands, experienced "significant" turbulence just 120 minutes into the transoceanic journey, and was forced to make an unscheduled landing.
Earlier this year, travelers and staff on a certain international flight experienced a terrifying five seconds period of extreme instability. One passenger died and many were hurt, as unbelted passengers were thrown from their seats and were slammed back.
Turbulence is not uncommon while flying, and while cases of significant turbulence appear to be increasing, they are still very rare.
Data suggests that there are an estimated five thousand cases of severe or worse turbulence annually, out of a sum of in excess of 35 million aircraft departures that currently occur globally.
Strong atmospheric disturbance is defined as when the vertical motions of a jet going through rough air masses exert more than 1.5g-force on your body - sufficient force to throw you from your seat if you were not fastened by a safety belt.
As global warming modifies atmospheric conditions, researchers alert that flying could become less smooth: temperature changes and shifting wind patterns in the upper atmosphere are expected to boost the regularity and severity of significant turbulence.