@ OG and Dave Noble
Points taken. It would have been better for Jetstar to send an updated checkin time , via text and/or email. Instead they left passengers to believe that the originally notified checkin time ( closing at 0110 local for a 0210 departure) still applied, even though the airline knew there was zero chance of that happening. It would have been better to have a staff member present and/or to provide signage. For some reason they didn’t , maybe the airport can’t facilitate such arrangements. But Jetstar’s misleading and inadequate communication left some vulnerable passengers confused and upset.
The flight arrived in Melbourne 5,5 hours behind schedule ( luggage took 50 minutes to clear after that, at the quietest time of the day)
JQ29/30 have very poor reliability performance ( ...but I factor that in as a consideration when taking the chance on a ticket...)