At least three cabin crew members on a flight to Australia were rushed to a hospital upon landing after a Delta Air Lines flight suffered severe turbulence on Friday.
Several people were injured on board the Airbus A350 after the flight from Los Angeles encountered turbulence during its descent into Sydney.
Emergency services were on standby when the Delta flight 41, with 245 passengers and 15 crew members onboard, landed in Sydney after 6.40am local time.
The Delta flight 41 "encountered brief turbulence" as it landed at Sydney Airport, a spokesperson with the airline said. The airline, however, claimed no passenger was injured.
“Nothing is more important than the safety of our people and our customers, and our priority is taking care of the impacted crew members,” the spokesperson added.
The New South Wales (NSW) Ambulance Service said it assessed five patients, including two 71-year-olds, a 60-year old woman and a 37-year-old woman. Three crew members were rushed to the Royal Prince Alfred Hospital with minor injuries that included back pain and headaches.
The injured had “musculoskeletal and lower back concerns”, NSW Ambulance Mascot station manager Lisa Frow told news.co.au.
The flight, which departure from Los Angeles on Wednesday at 10.11pm, was expected in from the south-west, but about 50km off the NSW coast it veered north-west, looping in to approach the airport from the north.
Sydney woke up to strong onshore winds on Friday, with no clear link to Tropical Cyclone Narelle, then closing in on far north Queensland.
Last year, 25 people were injured when a Delta Air Lines flight from Salt Lake City to Amsterdam hit “significant” turbulence two hours into the journey, forcing an emergency landing.
Thunderstorms featuring severe wind gusts, such as violent updrafts and downbursts, are hazardous to aircraft. Downbursts, in particular, have been known to cause many serious accidents.
Research suggests global warming is increasing the frequency and intensity of wind gusts from thunderstorm “downbursts”, with serious consequences for air travel.
