Several Hurt as In-Flight Disturbance Strikes Delta Flight Landing at Sydney, Australia
Several people sustained injuries after a Delta Airlines aircraft traveling from Los Angeles to Sydney experienced rough air Friday morning.
The flight, numbered 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it touched down at the Sydney airport, a company official stated. A number of the onboard staff were injured.
Emergency medical services said they treated five patients, and transported three of them to the hospital with minor injuries that such as spinal discomfort and migraines. Those affected spanned from their 30s to 70s.
It is the latest incident of commercial jets experiencing atmospheric disturbance, with experts pointing out that global warming is a major factor.
On board were nearly 250 travelers and fifteen staff members on the wide-body jet, the Delta spokesperson noted, clarifying that the plane landed "safely and normally" at the airport at 06:48 local time on the day in question.
The NSW Ambulance Service said they were alerted just a mere three minutes prior to the plane arrived, and response teams were ready and waiting at the airport.
Why plane turbulence is getting more frequent - and potentially more dangerous.
Last year, 25 people were injured when a separate Delta aircraft, on a route from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, Netherlands, experienced "considerable" rough air just 120 minutes into the transoceanic journey, and diverted for an emergency landing.
Earlier this year, passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines flight experienced a terrifying brief five-second period of extreme instability. An individual lost their life and numerous people sustained injuries, as individuals not fastened in were thrown from their seats and crashed back down.
Bumpy air is a common occurrence during flights, and while cases of rough conditions are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are still very rare.
Data suggests that there are approximately 5,000 incidents of significant in-flight disturbance each year, out of a overall number of in excess of 35 million aircraft departures that are conducted worldwide.
Intense turbulence is defined as when the up and down movements of a aircraft experiencing disturbed air apply in excess of 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - sufficient force to lift you out of your seat if you weren't wearing a seatbelt.
As global warming alters the conditions in the sky, experts warn that flying could become less smooth: temperature changes and changing jet streams in the jet stream level are expected to increase the frequency and intensity of severe turbulence.