Several Affected as Rough Air Strikes A Delta Airlines Plane Arriving in Sydney, Australia

Several people were hurt following a Delta jet from LA to Sydney was hit by rough air on Friday morning.

Flight DL41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it made its approach and landed at Sydney Airport, a company official told. Several cabin crew members were injured.

The New South Wales Ambulance Service stated they treated five patients, and transported three of them to the hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that such as spinal discomfort and migraines. The injured ranged from their 30s to 70s.

The event represents the most recent case of commercial jets being hit by turbulence, with researchers indicating that climate change is a key driver.

There were 245 passengers and a crew of 15 on the wide-body jet, the representative said, stating that the plane arrived "safely and normally" at the airport at 06:48 local time on Friday morning.

Emergency responders said they got a call just three minutes before the plane landed, and emergency vehicles were waiting on the tarmac.

Why in-flight bumpiness is growing more common - and more severe.

During the past year, 25 people were injured when a separate Delta aircraft, on a route from Salt Lake City, Utah to Amsterdam, encountered "severe" atmospheric disturbance just two hours into the transoceanic journey, and diverted for an unscheduled landing.

Recently, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines flight went through a harrowing five seconds bout of severe turbulence. A traveler passed away and numerous people sustained injuries, as unbelted passengers rose out of their seats and fell back down.

In-flight turbulence is not uncommon during flights, and while cases of rough conditions seem to be rising, they are statistically infrequent.

Estimates show that there are an estimated 5,000 incidents of severe-or-greater turbulence every year, out of a total of more than 35 million flights that currently occur worldwide.

Strong atmospheric disturbance is defined as when the sudden jolts of a aircraft going through rough air masses generate in excess of 1.5g-force on your body - enough to propel you from your seat if you did not have on a restraint.

As global warming modifies atmospheric conditions, experts warn that air travel could become bumpier: warming trends and changing jet streams in the upper atmosphere are expected to boost the frequency and intensity of significant turbulence.