Personally I find this story hard to believe and probably a bit one sided....
The flights through Normanton are part of the QLD Govt contracted routes so it’s basically impossible to leave early.
I’d guess what actually happened is the aircraft took off before scheduled departure but AFTER checkin had closed, which is 30 min before departure. Checkin closure time is the time to be aware of, not departure time.... Having spent plenty of time in the gulf and cape, pax arriving after checkin closes was a common theme.
No, it happened exactly as described. He arrived at Normanton airport well before the 30 minute check-in requirement. Apparently the flight had only a few pax onboard, who had already checked in so a decision was made to leave him behind.
To Rex's credit, they apologised profusely, including to the contractor (a large contributor to Rex's revenue) who'd paid for his flight, but that doesn't alter the detail of what happened.
Personally, despite being a recently retired Qantas staff member, I have no bias against Rex. Good on them for having a crack and employing some of our colleagues who otherwise may struggle without any support after March.