Several Injured as Turbulence Strikes A Delta Airlines Aircraft Landing at Sydney, Australia

Multiple passengers and crew sustained injuries after a Delta jet traveling from LA to Sydney, Australia experienced turbulence on Friday morning.

Flight DL41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it touched down at the Sydney airport, a company official told. A number of the onboard staff required medical attention.

Emergency medical services said they assessed five individuals, and transferred three to the hospital with minor injuries that included back pain and migraines. The patients' ages ranged from their 30s up to the 70s.

This marks the newest example of planes experiencing turbulence, with experts indicating that climate change is a major factor.

The aircraft was carrying 245 passengers and a crew of 15 on the aircraft, the official said, adding that the plane arrived "safely" at the airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on the day in question.

Paramedics reported they received a call just a mere three minutes ahead of the plane touched down, and emergency vehicles were standing by on the runway.

Why plane turbulence is becoming more frequent - and more severe.

During the past year, twenty-five passengers and crew were injured when a Delta Airlines flight, on a route from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, hit "severe" rough air just two hours into the long-haul flight, and diverted for an emergency landing.

Recently, passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines jet went through a harrowing five seconds of severe turbulence. A traveler died and many were hurt, as unbelted passengers lifted out of their seats and were slammed back.

Bumpy air is a common occurrence while flying, and while instances of strong or severe turbulence appear to be increasing, they are remained quite uncommon.

Data suggests that there are around five thousand cases of severe or worse turbulence each year, out of a overall number of more than 35 million aircraft departures that currently occur worldwide.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is described as when the up and down movements of a plane going through disturbed air apply greater than a significant G-force on your body - a strong enough force to throw you from your seat if you were not fastened by a restraint.

As climate change modifies weather patterns, experts warn that commercial aviation could become more turbulent: shifts in temperature and altered air currents in the upper atmosphere are likely to heighten the occurrence and strength of dangerous in-flight bumps.