Originally Posted by mhtaipei
ok, i called again, Mirinda said that they don't count TPE-HKG because there is no other OW carrier in Taiwan and you HAVE to take the segment to get out Asia.
There is nothing in any of the STAR files I have read about such a rule. In fact, if that were the case, anyone starting at a non-intercontinental gateway could claim their initial flight segment does not count. eg Someone starting in Canberra in Australia could claim their CBR-SYD initial segment does not count - but we all know it most certainly does count for both the 20 segment max rounting caclulation and the max 4 segments in SWP calculation. That is the very reason they allow 4 segments in your home continent, so you can get to/from the inter-continental gateway.
The OneWorld Explorer fare is structured to get you to other continents other than your own. They have to build in some flexibility in the home continent in order to get you to/from the inter-continental gateway, and they even permit 2 stopovers in your home continent - expected to be at the international gateway even though they are not required to be so.