Taiwanese airline STARLUX is set to launch its fourth route to the United States, connecting Taipei with Ontario, California. This new service will complement the carrier’s existing routes to Los Angeles, San Francisco, and Seattle. By adding Ontario to its network, STARLUX becomes the second long-haul operator at Ontario International Airport and joins China Airlines as the second Taiwanese carrier serving this destination.
The introduction of the Ontario route aims to tap into the significant Taiwanese community in Southern California. Despite increasing operational complexity and costs in the Los Angeles area, STARLUX expects this move will better serve areas closer to Ontario.
According to Aeroroutes, STARLUX will begin a four-weekly service on June 2 using its Airbus A350-900 aircraft. The airline has eight of these planes configured with four first-class seats, 26 business class seats, 36 premium economy seats, and 240 economy seats.
At a distance of 5,934 nautical miles (10,993 km), this new route will be STARLUX’s longest flight. However, it only slightly surpasses their current longest route from Taipei to Los Angeles by 0.47%. The schedule includes overnight flights back to Asia designed to maximize occupancy in premium cabins.
In July, STARLUX plans to operate ten weekly flights between Taipei and Los Angeles; four weekly flights between Taipei and Ontario; daily flights between Taipei and San Francisco; and daily flights between Taipei and Seattle. According to Cirium Diio data for July, STARLUX will account for 18% of the non-stop market share between mainland US cities and Taipei.
China Airlines also serves the Taipei-Ontario route with financial incentives having supported its launch in March 2018. Although China Airlines initially used all Boeing 777 aircraft for these flights, they now operate a mix of Boeing 777-300ERs and Airbus A350-900s.
Data from the US Department of Transportation indicates that China Airlines transported over 733,000 roundtrip passengers on this route from March 2018 through October 2024. The entry of STARLUX is expected to impact fares during less busy travel periods due to increased competition.
In terms of overall traffic between Taiwan’s capital city and US destinations within a year ending November 2024 more than1 .6 million roundtrip passengers traveled directly or indirectly via major hubs like San Francisco ,Seattle ,Los Angeles ,Tokyo Narita or Hong Kong . Among these travelers about63 % flew non-stop while others connected elsewhere .
San Francisco remains an important market due largely because it hosts one largest populations Taiwanese descent outside Asia making it third busiest long haul destination after London Tokyo
