In May 2025, Taiwan-based Starlux Airlines revealed its next destination in the United States, and it’s not what you’d necessarily expect. At the time, it was the first destination in the United States that the airline announced that wasn’t yet served by at least one of Taiwan’s two other global carriers (China Airlines and EVA Air). However, that has since changed.
I want to provide an update, as this flight has now become bookable (thanks to @IshrionA for flagging this), so we have all the details of what we can expect.
Starlux adds Taipei to Phoenix flights as of January 2026
As of January 15, 2026, Starlux Airlines will launch flights between Taipei Taoyuan Airport (TPE) and Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport (PHX). Specifically, the flight will operate with the following schedule:
JX26 Taipei to Phoenix departing 8:45PM arriving 5:40PM
JX25 Phoenix to Taipei departing 10:45PM arriving 4:55AM (+2 days)
The 7,401-mile route is blocked at 11hr55min eastbound and 15hr10min westbound. The flight will initially operate 3x weekly (on Sundays, Tuesdays, and Thursdays, in both directions), prior to increasing to 4x weekly as of mid-March 2026 (with added service on Saturdays).
Once launched, this will be the carrier’s longest route to date. As is the case on all of the carrier’s routes to the United States, this will be flown by an Airbus A350-900. That plane is equipped with 306 seats, including four first class seats, 26 business class seats, 36 premium economy seats, and 240 economy seats. I’ve reviewed Starlux’s excellent A350 business class.
Phoenix will be Starlux’s fifth destination in the United States, complementing flights to Los Angeles (LAX), Ontario (ONT), San Francisco (SFO), and Seattle (SEA).
Phoenix Mayor Kate Gallego broke the news of this route several weeks back, and shared that this comes as Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) plans to invest $165 billion into its Phoenix facilities. As she explained:
“Phoenix’s first non-stop flight to Asia reflects the incredible strides we’ve made with our local economy, and our emergence as an international city. TSMC’s historic investment in Phoenix has brought thousands of high wage jobs and boosted our reputation as a semiconductor hub, and now it’s helping increase air service demand.”
Here’s what Starlux Airlines Chairman K.W. Chang had to say about this announcement:
“I knew from the moment I set foot in Phoenix that STARLUX should make the investment to fly here. Not only is the growth of business between Taipei and Phoenix staggering, it’s a perfect match for our level of service. We are proud and honored to be the first carrier to provide nonstop Asia service for the Phoenix community.”
My take on Starlux’s latest long haul expansion
What makes this service addition interesting is that when Starlux first revealed plans to launch this route, it was going to be the only destination in the United States served by Starlux, but not China Airlines or EVA Air.
However, once Starlux announced these plans, China Airlines also decided to join in on the fun. The SkyTeam carrier is launching Phoenix flights as well, and is even beating Starlux to the punch, with flights starting in December 2025. However, the flight will only be nonstop in one direction — on the westbound sector, the China Airlines flight will route through Los Angeles (LAX), with pick-up rights there.
So, why is Phoenix suddenly getting two links to Taiwan? Up until this point, Phoenix has had zero flights to Asia, so to go from zero to two flights is a huge win for the local community. Obviously TSMC is a major part of this decision, though one wonders if that’s enough to sustain both of these flights.
I’m not sure how this is going to play out, but on the surface, China Airlines has several advantages over Starlux, in terms of making this route viable:
- China Airlines has a much bigger network, so there are a lot more points in Asia and beyond that travelers can connect to
- China Airlines is launching a partnership with Southwest, which has a massive hub in Phoenix, so there will be connectivity on that end as well
- By stopping in Los Angeles, the airline has a wider customer base with which it can fill these planes
Now, it’s worth remembering that Starlux has a partnership with Alaska Airlines, and Starlux wants to join the oneworld alliance. However, it remains to be seen if that alliance membership comes to fruition, given the differing interests of various airlines.
Bottom line
As of January 15, 2026, Starlux Airlines plans to launch 3x weekly flights to Phoenix, before increasing frequencies to 4x weekly. This is a huge win for Arizona, especially with China Airlines also launching this route, meaning the airport will have service from two Asian carriers.
It remains to be seen if the market can sustain that amount of capacity. Regardless, this is great in terms of connectivity from Arizona to Taiwan and beyond.
What do you make of Starlux launching Phoenix flights?
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