Taiwanese StarLux to add flights to Macau in August

Courtesy Focus Taiwan

Taiwanese startup carrier StarLux Airlines said today (Friday) it will add service to Macau and Malaysia starting in August, Central News Agency (CNA) reported.

The airline will fly four round-trip flights a week between Taoyuan and Macau and three round-trip flights a week between Taoyuan and Penang, the company said.

StarLux flew its first commercial flight on January 23 but suspended all operations on March 18 because of the pandemic and many resulting border restrictions.

It then started flying a limited schedule to Macau and Penang in June.

The new flight schedule is mainly the result of increasing cargo demand, StarLux spokesman Nieh Kuo-wei said, as quoted by CNA, though he suggested that “it would also be helpful to carry more passengers to keep flight crews sharp.”

However Nieh said there were no plans to resume flights on StarLux’s other route, between Taoyuan and Da Nang, Vietnam, as it is tourism-oriented and border controls curtailing cross-border tourism activity remain in place due to Covid-19.

According to CNA, StarLux’s launch of a new service to Cebu, Philippines, has been postponed to October 25 after being previously delayed from April 6 to July 1.

StarLux also said it has received permission from the Japanese government to fly to Okinawa, but the launch date has yet to be determined.

MDT/CNA