A Number of Affected as Rough Air Strikes Delta Plane into Sydney, Australia
A number of individuals were hurt after a Delta aircraft originating in LA to Sydney, Australia was hit by significant turbulence on Friday morning.
Flight DL41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it touched down at Sydney Airport, a company official told. Four flight attendants sustained injuries.
Emergency medical services said they assessed five patients, and took a trio to hospital with minor injuries that included back pain and head pain. Those affected were between their 30s to 70s.
The event represents the newest example of planes encountering atmospheric disturbance, with researchers pointing out that shifting climate patterns is a major factor.
The aircraft was carrying nearly 250 travelers and fifteen staff members on the aircraft, the Delta spokesperson noted, adding that the plane arrived "without further incident" at Sydney Airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on Friday.
Emergency responders indicated they got a call just three minutes ahead of the plane landed, and emergency vehicles were standing by on the runway.
The reasons turbulence is getting more frequent - and often stronger.
Last year, 25 people sustained injuries when a separate Delta aircraft, travelling from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, Netherlands, encountered "significant" atmospheric disturbance just a couple of hours into the transoceanic journey, and was forced to make an emergency landing.
Recently, passengers and crew on a certain international flight experienced a harrowing short but intense of severe turbulence. One passenger passed away and dozens were injured, as individuals not fastened in rose out of their seats and crashed back down.
Bumpy air is not uncommon during flights, and while cases of rough conditions appear to be increasing, they are statistically infrequent.
Data suggests that there are approximately five thousand cases of significant in-flight disturbance every year, out of a total of over 35 million aircraft departures that now take off globally.
Strong atmospheric disturbance is defined as when the sudden jolts of a aircraft experiencing disturbed air generate more than 1.5g-force on your body - a strong enough force to lift you out of your seat if you weren't wearing a safety belt.
As a changing climate modifies the conditions in the sky, researchers alert that flying could become bumpier: shifts in temperature and changing jet streams in the higher altitudes are projected to increase the occurrence and strength of severe turbulence.
