Several Hurt as In-Flight Disturbance Impacts A Delta Airlines Plane Arriving in Sydney, Australia

Multiple passengers and crew were hurt following a Delta Airlines flight originating in Los Angeles to Sydney was hit by significant turbulence this past Friday.

Delta Flight 41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it landed at Sydney Airport, a company official told. Four flight attendants required medical attention.

Emergency medical services reported they treated five patients, and transferred a trio to the hospital with relatively minor issues that comprised spinal discomfort and headaches. The injured spanned from their 30s to 70s.

This marks the most recent case of planes being hit by severe turbulence, with experts saying that shifting climate patterns is a major factor.

There were 245 people and 15 crew members on the Airbus A350, the Delta spokesperson said, adding that the plane arrived "without further incident" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday morning.

Paramedics reported they were alerted just three minutes before the plane landed, and ambulances were standing by on the runway.

Why plane turbulence is becoming increasingly prevalent - and potentially more dangerous.

In the previous year, 25 people sustained injuries when another Delta jet, flying from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, experienced "severe" rough air just a couple of hours into the transoceanic journey, and was forced to make an precautionary landing.

Earlier this year, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines jet endured a terrifying five seconds period of extreme instability. A traveler lost their life and many were hurt, as those without seatbelts were thrown from their seats and were slammed back.

Turbulence is fairly routine on aircraft journeys, and while instances of strong or severe turbulence are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are remained quite uncommon.

Research indicates that there are approximately 5,000 incidents of severe or worse turbulence each year, out of a total of in excess of 35 million journeys that are conducted worldwide.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is categorized as when the sudden jolts of a jet experiencing rough air masses apply in excess of 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - enough to propel you from your seat if you were not fastened by a safety belt.

As a changing climate modifies atmospheric conditions, specialists caution that commercial aviation could become bumpier: temperature changes and altered air currents in the higher altitudes are expected to increase the regularity and severity of dangerous in-flight bumps.