Paramedics ᴀssessed five people and transported three to a local hospital, a spokesperson for the New South Wales Ambulance Service confirmed to NBC News.
Three people were taken to a hospital after a Delta Air Lines flight from Los Angeles encountered turbulence shortly before landing in Sydney on Friday, health officials in Australia said.
Paramedics ᴀssessed five people and transported three to the city’s Royal Prince Alfred Hospital for further treatment, a spokesperson for the New South Wales Ambulance Service confirmed to NBC News.
The three people range in age from 35 to 70 and remain in stable condition as they are treated mainly for “minor musculoskeletal injuries,” the spokesperson added. A spokesperson for the Sydney Local Health District declined to provide further details.
“The most common cause for turbulence on flights around Sydney is convective storms,” according to Michael Heisel, a lecturer at The University of Sydney’s School of Civil Engineering.
“These weather events are becoming more common in Australia with the warming climate,” he said in an email Friday.
Flight-tracking data published by Flightradar24 showed the plane from Los Angeles landed just after 6.40 a.m. local time (3:40 p.m. Thursday ET).
The flight “encountered brief turbulence upon descent into Sydney,” a Delta spokesperson said in an email. “Four flight attendants reported injuries, three of whom sought further evaluation, and all have since been released.”
There were 245 pᴀssengers and 15 crew members aboard the flight, the Delta spokesperson said. None of the pᴀssengers reported injuries, they added.
Turbulence is common on many flights and over the past year several people have been injured as planes from multiple airlines have encountered it.
In July, 25 people were taken to hospital after a Delta flight heading from Utah to Amsterdam experienced “significant turbulence” and had to land in Minneapolis. And in September, three flight attendants also suffered minor injuries during a turbulent Delta flight from Ecuador to Atlanta.
