A Number of Affected as Turbulence Strikes A Delta Airlines Flight into Sydney
Multiple passengers and crew sustained injuries after a Delta flight from Los Angeles to Sydney, Australia experienced significant turbulence this past Friday.
Delta Flight 41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it touched down at the Sydney airport, a representative for the carrier told. A number of the onboard staff required medical attention.
The New South Wales Ambulance Service reported they assessed a total of five people, and transferred a trio to the hospital with minor injuries that comprised back pain and migraines. Those affected were between their 30s to 70s.
It is the newest example of commercial jets experiencing atmospheric disturbance, with aviation specialists saying that climate change is a key driver.
There were 245 people and fifteen staff members on the Airbus A350, the Delta spokesperson noted, clarifying that the plane touched down "safely" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on the day in question.
The NSW Ambulance Service said they got a call just three minutes prior to the plane touched down, and response teams were waiting on the tarmac.
Why plane turbulence is getting more common - and potentially more dangerous.
During the past year, two dozen individuals were injured when a separate Delta aircraft, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, experienced "severe" rough air just a couple of hours into the lengthy trip, and had to make an emergency landing.
Earlier this year, travelers and staff on a certain international flight endured a frightening brief five-second bout of severe turbulence. One passenger lost their life and dozens were injured, as those without seatbelts rose out of their seats and crashed back down.
Turbulence is not uncommon during flights, and while instances of strong or severe turbulence are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are remained quite uncommon.
Research indicates that there are approximately thousands of instances of severe or worse turbulence annually, out of a total of over 35 million journeys that are conducted around the world.
Intense turbulence is described as when the sudden jolts of a plane passing through rough air masses generate more than 1.5 times the force of gravity on your body - a strong enough force to lift you out of your seat if you weren't wearing a restraint.
As global warming modifies weather patterns, experts warn that commercial aviation could become bumpier: shifts in temperature and altered air currents in the upper atmosphere are expected to heighten the regularity and severity of dangerous in-flight bumps.
