The business-class cabins on Taipei-based Starlux Airlines have a signature scent. A good one. It’s called Home in the Air, and it’s pumped throughout the space as part of an in-flight experience that showcases details other airlines would likely forgo, which also include branded toilet paper and calming music in the lavatories.
In mid-2023, I was inhaling that custom-designed fragrance (I smelled notes of tea and wood) aboard the startup airline’s first trans-Pacific route between the United States and Asia (L.A. and Taipei). I’ve flown in dozens of premium cabins, but the experience on Starlux was one of the most polished and refined—mighty impressive for any carrier, but even more so for an airline that launched in 2020.
It doesn’t hurt that the airline operates new Airbus A350s, with cutting-edge, tech-forward features such as Bluetooth connectivity and USB-C charger outlets at every seat. Starlux is the eager newcomer hoping to win over passengers traveling to, from, or within Asia. And this year, it did.
Recently, the international air-transport rating organization Skytrax unveiled its annual World Airline Awards, a ranking of more than 325 airlines in various categories. The accolades are based on input from travelers across 100 countries who submitted millions of votes via an online survey that was open from September 2024 to May 2025. The list, which was introduced in 1999, is now one of the largest annual air-passenger satisfaction surveys. It’s an “Oscars of the aviation industry,” if you will.
Among the distinctions is the World’s Most Improved Airline, an award given to a carrier that has climbed the most in survey results year over year. This is a particularly notable recognition in the current air-travel climate, in which delays are common, legroom continues to get tighter, checked bags are no longer free, and airport lounge access is decreasing.
That’s why an “improved” airline is reason to celebrate. In 2025, Taiwan’s Starlux Airlines nabbed the World’s Most Improved spot, with Italy’s ITA Airways coming in second place (and winning the Most Improved in Europe) and HK Express (a budget airline out of Hong Kong) coming in third. Meanwhile, Breeze Airlines was awarded the Most Improved carrier in North America.
Here’s a closer look at how (and why) these carriers lead the World’s Most Improved list.
What the most improved airlines have in common
There’s an overarching theme to the 2025 list of Most Improved airlines: upstart carriers that have something to prove. Starlux, ITA, and Breeze, winners in their respective regions, were all established within the past decade. In the past year, these airlines have significantly expanded their route networks while building distinctive brand identities.
Starlux captured the attention of survey responders thanks to its major expansion across the Pacific. Today, the airline operates flights from Taipei not only to Los Angeles but also to San Francisco; Seattle; Ontario, California; and, soon, Phoenix. A larger expansion to the U.S. East Coast and Europe is expected in the coming years.
Breeze Airways is another newer airline that did well in the rankings, nabbing the title of Most Improved in North America. The carrier, which started flying in 2021, is the fifth airline startup created by David Neeleman, the founder of JetBlue Airways. Its business model is to connect travelers in cities that have little or no nonstop service, thus sparing folks from having to change planes in out-of-the-way hubs. The airline has greatly expanded since its launch four years ago; it now has 53 planes that fly to 70 airports—up from one route and one plane from Tampa to Charleston in 2021.
Here’s the full list of Most Improved Airlines, according to Skytrax.
World’s Most Improved Airlines
1. Starlux Airlines (hub: Taipei, Taiwan)
2. ITA Airways (hubs: Rome and Milan, Italy)
3. HK Express (hub: Hong Kong)
4. Eurowings (hubs: Düsseldorf and Cologne, Germany)
5. EgyptAir (hub: Cairo)
6. Air Japan (hub: Tokyo)
7. MIAT Mongolian Airlines (hub: Ulaanbaatar, Mongolia)
8. Discover Airlines (hubs: Frankfurt and Munich, Germany)
9. Air Greenland (hub: Nuuk, Greeland)
10. Cebu Pacific (hub: Manila, Cebu, and Davao, Philippines)
