Multiple Hurt as Turbulence Strikes A Delta Airlines Plane into Sydney, Australia
A number of individuals were hurt following a Delta flight originating in LA to Sydney, Australia encountered rough air this past Friday.
Flight DL41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it landed at the Sydney airport, an airline spokesperson stated. Four flight attendants were injured.
Local paramedics said they evaluated five individuals, and took three of them to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that such as back pain and head pain. Those affected ranged from their thirties and seventies.
The event represents the latest incident of planes being hit by turbulence, with aviation specialists indicating that global warming is a key driver.
There were nearly 250 travelers and a crew of 15 on the aircraft, the Delta spokesperson noted, adding that the plane touched down "without further incident" at the airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday morning.
Paramedics indicated they were alerted just three minutes ahead of the plane arrived, and response teams were ready and waiting at the airport.
Why plane turbulence is growing more frequent - and often stronger.
Last year, 25 people sustained injuries when another Delta jet, flying from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, experienced "severe" turbulence just 120 minutes into the lengthy trip, and was forced to make an emergency landing.
Recently, passengers and crew on a certain international flight experienced a frightening brief five-second of severe turbulence. A traveler passed away and many were hurt, as individuals not fastened in were thrown from their seats and were slammed back.
Turbulence is not uncommon on aircraft journeys, and while occurrences of rough conditions are reportedly becoming more frequent, they are remained quite uncommon.
Research indicates that there are an estimated 5,000 incidents of significant in-flight disturbance annually, out of a overall number of more than 35 million journeys that are conducted worldwide.
Severe turbulence is defined as when the vertical motions of a jet experiencing unstable air apply greater than 1.5g-force on your body - a strong enough force to lift you out of your seat if you weren't wearing a seatbelt.
As global warming modifies weather patterns, experts warn that flying could become more turbulent: shifts in temperature and changing jet streams in the upper atmosphere are expected to increase the regularity and severity of significant turbulence.
