Multiple Affected as Turbulence Hits A Delta Airlines Flight into Sydney
Several people have been injured following a Delta flight originating in LA to Sydney encountered significant turbulence Friday morning.
Flight DL41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at Sydney Airport, an airline spokesperson told. Four flight attendants required medical attention.
The New South Wales Ambulance Service reported they treated five patients, and transported three of them to hospital with minor injuries that included pain in the back and migraines. The patients' ages were between their 30s to 70s.
This marks the most recent case of commercial jets experiencing severe turbulence, with researchers saying that shifting climate patterns is a major factor.
On board were 245 people and fifteen staff members on the wide-body jet, the official said, adding that the plane arrived "without further incident" at the airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on Friday morning.
Emergency responders said they received a call just three minutes prior to the plane landed, and response teams were ready and waiting at the airport.
Why plane turbulence is growing more frequent - and potentially more dangerous.
Last year, 25 people were injured when a Delta Airlines flight, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, Netherlands, encountered "considerable" rough air just two hours into the long-haul flight, and had to make an emergency landing.
Recently, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines jet experienced a terrifying five seconds period of extreme instability. An individual lost their life and dozens were injured, as unbelted passengers were thrown from their seats and crashed back down.
Turbulence is not uncommon during flights, and while instances of significant turbulence appear to be increasing, they are still very rare.
Estimates show that there are around five thousand cases of severe-or-greater turbulence annually, out of a sum of over 35 million journeys that are conducted globally.
Intense turbulence is described as when the up and down movements of a aircraft going through disturbed air generate in excess of a significant G-force on your body - sufficient force to lift you out of your seat if you weren't wearing a safety belt.
As a changing climate alters weather patterns, specialists caution that flying could become bumpier: warming trends and shifting wind patterns in the upper atmosphere are likely to increase the frequency and intensity of severe turbulence.
