A Number of Hurt as Turbulence Impacts Delta Plane Arriving in Sydney
A number of individuals have been injured when a Delta Airlines aircraft traveling from LA to Sydney experienced rough air Friday morning.
Delta Flight 41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it touched down at the Sydney airport, a company official told. A number of the onboard staff required medical attention.
Local paramedics reported they treated five individuals, and transferred a trio to hospital with relatively minor issues that included spinal discomfort and headaches. The patients' ages ranged from their thirties and seventies.
The event represents the latest incident of planes encountering turbulence, with experts saying that global warming is a significant contributor.
On board were 245 people and 15 crew members on the aircraft, the representative noted, stating that the plane arrived "safely and normally" at the airport at 6:48 a.m. local time on Friday.
Emergency responders said they were alerted just a mere three minutes prior to the plane landed, and emergency vehicles were ready and waiting at the airport.
Why in-flight bumpiness is getting more common - and often stronger.
During the past year, twenty-five passengers and crew sustained injuries when a separate Delta aircraft, on a route from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, hit "significant" rough air just 120 minutes into the lengthy trip, and was forced to make an emergency landing.
Recently, those on board on a Singapore Airlines jet went through a terrifying short but intense period of extreme instability. One passenger lost their life and numerous people sustained injuries, as those without seatbelts lifted out of their seats and were slammed back.
Turbulence is not uncommon during flights, and while occurrences of strong or severe turbulence seem to be rising, they are remained quite uncommon.
Research indicates that there are approximately 5,000 incidents of severe or worse turbulence every year, out of a total of over 35 million journeys that are conducted around the world.
Severe turbulence is categorized as when the sudden jolts of a jet going through unstable air generate more than 1.5g-force on your body - sufficient force to propel you from your seat if you were not fastened by a safety belt.
As climate change alters atmospheric conditions, specialists caution that commercial aviation could become more turbulent: temperature changes and altered air currents in the upper atmosphere are likely to boost the frequency and intensity of severe turbulence.