A teenager with Tourette's was left in floods of tears as British Airways refused to let his family board a flight after he shouted 'bomb' at the gate. 

Mason Entwistle, 13, was set to fly to Alicante from Gatwick Airport on Saturday with a party of 10 including his father Martyn, mother Gemma and two sisters. 

BA had been made aware days beforehand that Mason, who was 'incredibly nervous', had been diagnosed with coprolalia some six months earlier.

But when the youngster involuntarily shouted 'bomb' at the gate, he and his family were thrown off the flight after being deemed a 'safety threat'.

Dramatic video footage taken by Mason's father shows him desperately pleading with a BA duty manager as the boy is heard wailing in the background. 

Martyn then asks the airline worker why Mason is being discriminated against for his disability, only to be told that he 'posed a threat to the welfare of other passengers'. 

The ordeal left the youngster 'utterly distraught' as his family were marched through Gatwick flanked by three armed security guards - and later offered no compensation or alternative route to Spain. 

Martyn told the Daily Mail: 'Mason was crying on the floor and desperately apologising to people. He actually said to a member of our party, "What's the point in my life if I'm not allowed to do anything?" Everyone was in floods of tears. 

'We were well aware before we got to the airport that he might tic, which can happen when he gets nervous. My wife called BA and told them about his Tourette's, we even brought proof of his diagnosis. 

'All the way through security it was fine, even though he shouted 'bomb' three times as we were walking through. 

'But then when we got to the gate he was ticcing a lot more. So the duty manager took us down to the bridge and said the captain needs to speak to us. 

'Eventually, after 40 minutes waiting in the sweltering heat, three armed officers came marching down and we were told we wouldn't be flying.

'No one offered Mason any assistance or help as we were taken back into the airport. It's intimidating for an adult when you've got armed officers with guns behind you, let alone for an upset kid. It was clear he was totally broken down.' 

After being directed to BA's helpdesk at the south London airport, the Entwistles were told they would not be transferred onto an alternative flight because 'Martyn had refused to leave the bridge'. 

'It was absolute nonsense,' he says. 'There were armed officers there, as if I'd refuse to leave in that scenario.'

The family were instead left with little choice but to spend £2,400 on separate flights to southern Spain through Vueling, one of BA's sister airlines. 

And Martyn says he was left 'amazed' by the quality of Vueling's customer service aboard the family's flight on Sunday, after dubbing BA's 'totally bizarre'.

He added: 'When we got to the BA helpdesk they were unaware what had happened. We've emailed them since and have heard absolutely nothing.

'We flew the next day and I can't praise Vueling enough. The duty manager came and introduced himself when we got to the airport, he shook Mason's hand, had a chat with us all. 

'When we got to the gate, the captain then welcomed us on the flight, gave us all a big cuddle and then we had seats at the back of the plane with a free row in front of us. 

'He paid for all of our food and drink and took Mason up to the cockpit to take pictures. It's just amazing how different the two companies could be.'

Martyn, however, admits that it has been difficult to relax in Spain amid fears that his family's airport nightmare could reignite on their return flight. 

The 39-year-old is determined to ensure no other families have to experience anything similar - and has already been in contact with a number of Tourette's charities.

'It's not about the money which we lost,' he says. 'We just wanted to show Mason that he can fly, that he can go on holiday. It was just horrendous. 

'The BA staff need training for scenarios like this. They were just following protocol - but we don't want any other families to have to go through this.' 

A spokesperson for British Airways said: 'This was an extremely difficult, complex and distressing situation. 

'Due to a number of contributing factors, the decision was made not to allow the group to travel on the flight.'

Tourette syndrome is a neurological condition that causes people to make sounds and movements involuntarily.

Mason's ordeal at Gatwick comes months after Tourette's sufferer and activist John Davidson sparked controversy after shouting a racial slur at the BAFTAs. 

Michael B Jordan and Delroy Lindo were on stage at the time and the outburst was audible on BBC1's initial broadcast of the show, before eventually being removed. 

Davidson, whose life inspired the movie I Swear, later apologised for using the slur, saying: 'When my coprolalia tics came out, my stomach just dropped. As always, I felt a wave of shame and embarrassment hit me all at once.

'You want the floor to swallow you up. I wanted to disappear. I wanted to hide - just get away from all the eyes.'