TAIPEI (Taiwan News) — Starlux Airlines will launch three flights a week between Taiwan and San Francisco in December, with one flight a day planned for next year, the company said Friday (June 30).

The company started flights to Los Angeles as its first destination in the United States just last April. Japan and Southeast Asia were its focus since the launch of the airline in early 2020.

 

The company hopes to introduce flights to Seattle, Singapore, and Jakarta in 2024, Starlux Chair Chang Kuo-wei (張國煒) told a shareholders’ meeting Friday. He also expressed interest in improving flight hours for Ho Chi Minh City in Vietnam and in launching flights to Clark in the Philippines, CNA reported.

India would only be considered once the airline’s connections between Taiwan and the U.S. were stabilized, according to Chang. For the east coast of the U.S., Starlux would need the Airbus A350-1000, but even then, it would be difficult to make money because of the long distance, he said.

As to ticket prices, Chang said it would take two to three years before the period of expensive flights cooled down and stabilized. One of the issues was a shortage of staff in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, he said.

Responding to a question from a shareholder, Chang said his airline was not interested in domestic flights for the time being, per CNA. One day, Starlux would operate flights inside Taiwan, but not now, he said.