Are airlines allowed to move up the time of a flight?

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I was on a flight recently where my flight was schedule for 5:50PM, but when I got to the gate, the time had changed to 5:45PM and eventually 5:40PM. While it didn't make much difference for me since I was there early, that 10 minutes could be someone making and missing their flight.
Are airlines allowed to make flights leave sooner? If someone misses their flight because of this, do they have to be compensated by the airline?
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Can airline change flight last minute?
A simple way to change your last minute flight without charges is to do it within 24 hours of purchasing the flights. After a 24 hours window, the next option you have is to wait for the airline to make changes in your flight ticket. which will automatically give you a refund if you change your flight.Do airlines ever move flights earlier?
Planes can and do leave early, though such departures are rarely more than a few minutes before the official departure time stated on your ticket. Sometimes this can happen because the boarding process went unexpectedly smoothly, or maybe a mechanical problem got fixed a lot faster than anticipated.Can airlines change your flight without compensation?
It's federal law: \u201cA passenger is entitled to a refund if the airline cancelled a flight, regardless of the reason, and the passenger chooses not to be rebooked on a new flight on that airline.\u201dThailand News Today | Domestic airlines allow in-flight meals
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Josh Sorenson, LT Chan, Vincent Albos, Ben Mack