I recently had a very disappointing experience with STARLUX Airlines, both during the flight and in my interactions with customer service afterward.
On a flight from Taipei to Macau, the passenger seated next to me appeared to be in significant distress from the moment he boarded. He initially asked to move to an empty row but was denied. Shortly afterward, he rushed to the lavatory and only returned for takeoff. Throughout the flight, he appeared visibly unwell, shaking and twitching enough to cause our row and the seats in front of us to move.
Once the seatbelt sign was turned off, he immediately returned to the lavatory. Concerned for his wellbeing, I informed a flight attendant in both English and Chinese. The crew member briefly checked on him but did not appear to take any further action. After he returned, he continued showing signs of distress, and despite additional attempts to get the crew's attention, the situation seemed to be largely ignored.
After the flight, I contacted STARLUX to express concerns about how the situation was handled and whether crew training adequately prepared staff to respond to potentially serious passenger welfare issues.
The response I received stated that the passenger was simply "resting" according to the crew report and suggested that further action was not taken because I did not specifically request it. I found this explanation unsatisfactory, as it seemed clear that the passenger was experiencing some form of physical or medical issue.
A former STARLUX flight attendant I know suggested that inexperienced crew members may have been reluctant to escalate the situation. The flight was only partially full, which also made me wonder why the passenger was not moved to an empty row for comfort and monitoring.
Overall, the experience left me questioning whether the airline's reputation for premium service aligns with how situations like this are handled in practice.
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