Several Affected as In-Flight Disturbance Strikes A Delta Airlines Plane into Sydney, Australia
Multiple passengers and crew were hurt when a Delta jet traveling from LA to Sydney was hit by rough air Friday morning.
The flight, numbered 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at Sydney Airport, an airline spokesperson stated. Several cabin crew members sustained injuries.
The New South Wales Ambulance Service reported they assessed five patients, and took a trio to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that included back pain and headaches. Those affected spanned from their 30s to 70s.
This marks the latest incident of aircraft encountering turbulence, with researchers saying that global warming is a significant contributor.
There were 245 people and fifteen staff members on the wide-body jet, the representative said, stating that the plane landed "safely" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday morning.
Emergency responders indicated they got a call just three minutes before the plane touched down, and emergency vehicles were waiting on the tarmac.
Why plane turbulence is getting more frequent - and often stronger.
Last year, two dozen individuals were hurt when a Delta Airlines flight, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, Netherlands, experienced "significant" rough air just two hours into the lengthy trip, and diverted for an unscheduled landing.
Earlier this year, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines jet went through a terrifying brief five-second of severe turbulence. An individual passed away and numerous people sustained injuries, as unbelted passengers rose out of their seats and were slammed back.
Turbulence is a common occurrence on aircraft journeys, and while occurrences of strong or severe turbulence are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are remained quite uncommon.
Research indicates that there are around 5,000 incidents of severe or worse turbulence every year, out of a total of in excess of 35 million aircraft departures that are conducted globally.
Severe turbulence is defined as when the sudden jolts of a plane going through unstable air generate greater than 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - enough to lift you out of your seat if you did not have on a seatbelt.
As climate change modifies atmospheric conditions, specialists caution that commercial aviation could become more turbulent: shifts in temperature and shifting wind patterns in the upper atmosphere are expected to boost the occurrence and strength of severe turbulence.
