Nagoya will be added to Starlux Airlines’ network before the end of 2023 as the carrier further increases its footprint in the Japanese market.

Flights between Taiwan Taoyuan International Airport (TPE) and Nagoya’s Chubu Centrair International Airport (NGO) will start on Dec. 1, operating daily. The carrier intends to deploy 188-seat Airbus A321neos on the route in a two-class configuration.

The move sees Starlux increase its footprint in Japan to eight destinations. The airline launched its first flights to the country in December 2020, operating to Osaka Kansai International Airport and Tokyo Narita International Airport. Starlux has since added service to Fukuoka, Okinawa Naha, Sapporo New Chitose, Sendai, and most recently, Kumamoto.

In the Taipei-Nagoya market, Starlux will face direct competition from China Airlines and Peach, which each serve the sector daily, while Tigerair Taiwan and Batik Air Malaysia offer five and three round trips per week, respectively.

In addition, Cathay Pacific intends to return to the market on Oct. 29 for the first time since February 2020. Service will be five times per week using a mix of A330-900s and A350-900s.

Analysis of data provided by OAG Schedules Analyser reveals that about 15,600 two-way weekly seats will be available between Taipei and Nagoya by early December, with Starlux commanding about 17% of the market to become the third-largest provider of capacity. China Airlines will be the largest with a 28% share, followed by Cathay Pacific on 21.5%. 

However, the total capacity available between the cities from December will be around 34% down on the same period in 2019 when the number of weekly seats topped 23,600. At that time, AirAsia Japan, EVA Airways, Japan Airlines and Star Flyer also offered daily flights.

In the wider Taiwan-Japan market, overall capacity between the countries in September 2023 remains about 22% down on pre-pandemic levels, but air service is steadily growing and will be around 84% of 2019 volumes by December.