Multiple Hurt as Turbulence Strikes A Delta Airlines Plane into Sydney, Australia
Multiple passengers and crew have been injured after a Delta Airlines jet originating in Los Angeles to Sydney experienced significant turbulence on Friday morning.
The flight, numbered 41 "went through a short bout of rough air" as it touched down at the Sydney airport, a representative for the carrier informed. Four flight attendants were injured.
Emergency medical services reported they evaluated five individuals, and transferred three to hospital with non-life-threatening injuries that such as pain in the back and headaches. The injured spanned from their thirties and seventies.
The event represents the newest example of aircraft being hit by severe turbulence, with experts pointing out that global warming is a significant contributor.
The aircraft was carrying nearly 250 travelers and 15 crew members on the wide-body jet, the official added, clarifying that the plane arrived "safely" at Sydney Airport at shortly before 7 a.m. on Friday morning.
Emergency responders reported they received a call just three minutes prior to the plane touched down, and response teams were standing by on the runway.
Why in-flight bumpiness is getting more frequent - and potentially more dangerous.
In the previous year, two dozen individuals were injured when a separate Delta aircraft, travelling from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, experienced "significant" rough air just 120 minutes into the long-haul flight, and was forced to make an precautionary landing.
Recently, travelers and staff on a Singapore Airlines jet endured a terrifying five seconds bout of severe turbulence. An individual died and dozens were injured, as those without seatbelts lifted out of their seats and crashed back down.
Bumpy air is not uncommon during flights, and while occurrences of strong or severe turbulence seem to be rising, they are statistically infrequent.
Estimates show that there are approximately five thousand cases of severe-or-greater turbulence each year, out of a total of over 35 million aircraft departures that are conducted around the world.
Severe turbulence is described as when the sudden jolts of a jet going through rough air masses generate more than 1.5g-force on your body - enough to throw you from your seat if you were not fastened by a seatbelt.
As global warming alters atmospheric conditions, specialists caution that air travel could become less smooth: shifts in temperature and changing jet streams in the jet stream level are projected to increase the occurrence and strength of dangerous in-flight bumps.
