I think that the point that he is trying to make is that if you choose to fly SQ, TG, MH, etc. you may not be flying a DIRECT FLIGHT "as per your terms", but you in fact will be dealing with THE EXACT same numbers of stops and may possibly arrive earlier than on your DIRECT BA/QF flights. It would seem that the hair you are splitting refers to having a single flight number for both segments or not, having sat in the BA/QF F lounge on many occasions, I can assure you that many fliers spend time on the ground in Singapore on their DIRECT flights.