Originally Posted by
moondog
I honestly don't regard the alliance memberships as a major advantage for BR or CI because both are on the fringes of their respective alliances. That having been said, they have sufficiently robust networks to drive traffic through Taiwan. JX isn't quite there yet, but it's not an impossible dream.
The problem with the Taiwanese carriers is that they don't have a price advantage over their regional rivals. I travel from time to time between western North America and Southeast Asia (Singapore, Saigon, Kuala Lumpur, etc.) and invariably the best pricing is via Japan. I'm perfectly willing to use EVA or China Airlines but I won't pay a 20-30% premium to do so, especially when I have always been impressed with ANA and its service. The only way Taiwanese carriers (including Starlux) are going to make a bigger impact is by offering better value on transpacific flights. That simply isn't happening at present.