Originally Posted by
Captain Schmidt
I'm sure you are right and I've never actually been in the position to have to find out, but if so then the wording on the Star web-site is potentially misleading. To me "operated under" could mean any flight number that the flight was carrying, including that of a Star Alliance carrier, but it would seem that "operated under" = "operating carrier" so why not clearly state that (rhetorical question obviously)?
This has been discussed ad infinitum on many *A member fora and there really is no confusion.
The basic rule is: operating metal is the deciding factor.