With the bonus EQMs that just posted, I'm now 654 miles short of 1K. The reason? I still don't have full credit for a flight I took in September from SFO to CNS, via SYD, with a UA flight number.

The SFO-SYD miles on UA metal posted within a day or two. The SYD-CNS flight on Virgin Blue still hasn't posted. I first requested credit on the website, then two months later, having gotten no response, mailed in the boarding passes just before Thanksgiving. I got a letter dated December 3rd, saying the credit was denied because "The records show this ticket was never used."

Yesterday I called MP, and was told that my record indicates the boarding passes were received, and that I should just ignore the denial letter ("an automated response"), which was probably generated in response to my initial request on the website.

Does this sound likely to anyone? Am I safe to just wait for this credit, even if it takes longer than the end of the year? If I knew for certain that I wouldn't get the credit, I would probably (with extreme annoyance) make a short mileage run before the 31st. Advice?