Starlux Airlines has released flight schedules for three of its initial destinations. Hoping to take-off in late January, the brand new Taiwanese airline plans initially to fly passengers to Macau, Da Nang (Vietnam), and Penang (Malaysia). The release of these schedules comes just after the airline was officially granted its Air Operators Certificate (AOC) by the Taiwanese Ministry of Transportation and Communications.

The flight schedules

The flight times below are courtesy of the Taiwanese website ETtoday. Some schedules are particularly interesting as some flights leave five minutes later/earlier depending on the day, but then have identical scheduled arrival times. In an attempt to make things less complicated, we've summarized and consolidated the information:

Taipei-Macau

• Morning: JX201 will depart Taipei daily between 0725-0730 and arrive in Macau at 0925.It will return to Taipei as JX202 at 1030, and arrive at 1215.
• Afternoon: JX203 will depart Taipei daily between 1305-1315 and arrive in Macau at 1510.It will return to Taipei as JX204 at 1610, and arrive at 1755.
• Evening: JX205 will depart Taipei daily between 1845-1850 and arrive in Macau at 2040.It will return to Taipei as JX206 at 2140, and arrive at 2320.

Taipei-Da Nang

• Morning: JX701 will depart Taipei daily between 0740-0750 and arrive in Da Nang at 0935.It will return to Taipei as JX702 at 1035, and arrive at 1420.
• Evening: JX1701 will depart Taipei daily at 1520 and arrive in Da Nang at 1715.It will return to Taipei as JX1702. Depending on the day it will depart Da Nang between 1815-1835 and arrive at 2200-2220.

Taipei-Penang

• JX721 will depart Taipei daily at 0920 and arrive in Penang at 1400.It will return to Taipei as JX722. Depending on the day, it will depart Penang between 1500-1510, and arrive at 1945-2000.

The start of these services in late January is meant to capitalize on the high demand for Lunar New Year (Chinese New Year) travel. According to Focus Taiwan, tickets will go on sale on December 16th.

The necessity for daily flights

According to the CEO of Starlux, daily flights are necessary for the airline. The goal is to offer flexibility - especially for business travelers. This is what he said to ETtoday (translated):

“It is necessary that Starlux Airlines fly daily to regional destinations. Only by offering daily flights can we meet the needs of modern travelers who tend to travel any time they wish, or adjust flexibly to the temporary and often changing schedules of business travelers, bringing maximum convenience for all the passengers,” said Chang Kuo-wei, CEO of Starlux Airlines.

The high frequency of these flights will certainly help business travelers who are more likely to make shorter trips. Passengers will make their journey using the airline's brand new A321neo aircraft, of which it will have three once flights commence.

Currently, the airline only has one A321neo - which it received in late October. Subsequent A321neos are expected to arrive in late December and mid-January. Business Traveller reports that the remaining narrowbodies are expected to be delivered by mid-2021.

Conclusion

We've seen so many airlines come and go in the last year. The launch of Canada Jetlines is looking less and less likely while there is still much work to do on WOW Air's reincarnation.  However, Starlux has stood out as one of the few airlines making tangible and steady progress towards its first revenue flight. We're excited to see how things go!

Do you have any plans to try out this new carrier on its regional flights next year? If so, let us know which flight and destination you'll be choosing!