Multiple Hurt as Turbulence Impacts Delta Flight into Sydney
Several people were hurt following a Delta Airlines jet traveling from LA to Sydney, Australia encountered turbulence Friday morning.
Flight DL41 "experienced a brief period of turbulence" as it made its approach and landed at the Sydney airport, a company official told. Several cabin crew members sustained injuries.
Emergency medical services reported they evaluated five patients, and transferred three of them to a medical facility with relatively minor issues that comprised spinal discomfort and headaches. The injured ranged from their 30s up to the 70s.
The event represents the latest incident of aircraft encountering atmospheric disturbance, with researchers saying that global warming is a significant contributor.
The aircraft was carrying nearly 250 travelers and a crew of 15 on the Airbus A350, the Delta spokesperson said, clarifying that the plane touched down "safely and normally" at the airport at 06:48 local time on the day in question.
Paramedics reported they received a call just a mere three minutes ahead of the plane landed, and emergency vehicles were standing by on the runway.
The reasons turbulence is becoming more common - and potentially more dangerous.
Last year, two dozen individuals sustained injuries when another Delta jet, flying from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam, Netherlands, encountered "significant" atmospheric disturbance just 120 minutes into the lengthy trip, and had to make an precautionary landing.
Recently, passengers and crew on a Singapore Airlines jet endured a terrifying brief five-second of severe turbulence. One passenger died and numerous people sustained injuries, as unbelted passengers rose out of their seats and were slammed back.
Turbulence is a common occurrence while flying, 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 significant in-flight disturbance every year, out of a sum of in excess of 35 million aircraft departures that currently occur around the world.
Intense turbulence is defined as when the sudden jolts of a jet experiencing unstable air exert more than a significant G-force on your body - sufficient force to lift you out of your seat if you did not have on a safety belt.
As a changing climate modifies weather patterns, experts warn that flying could become more turbulent: shifts in temperature and altered air currents in the upper atmosphere are likely to increase the frequency and intensity of severe turbulence.
